Stanford beats Minnesota to reach NCAA volleyball final
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Inky Ajanaku had 15 kills and nine blocks and Stanford beat second-ranked Minnesota in four sets Thursday night to reach the NCAA women’s volleyball final.
The 6-foot-6 freshmen hitting duo of Kathryn Plummer and Audriana Fitzmorris combined for 25 kills in the 2624, 25-19, 22-25, 25-22 victory.
Stanford will face Texas winner in the final. The Longhorns beat Nebraska in straight sets in the second semifinal.
Plummer, Fitzmorris and the 6-4 Ajanaku consistently got touches at the net on the majority of Minnesota’s attacks. Morgan Hentz and setter Jenna Gray made up the rest of the freshmen quartet that proved vital in leading Stanford (26-7) to its first national final since 2008.
“People have been talking about our freshmen all week, about whether they’re going to play like freshmen or not,” Stanford coach John Dunning said. “And what I say is, yeah, they played like freshmen. They’re really good. They’re poised for freshmen, and they can handle it and they’re continuing to learn and handle it better.”
Down 20-17 in the fourth set, Minnesota’s Samantha Seliger-Swenson blocked Stanford’s Ivana Vanjak to tie the set at 21. Ajanaku, then, ripped a kill down the middle on the next play to put Stanford ahead for good. At 24-22, Fitzmorris killed an overpass at the net to send the Gophers home.
Big Ten Player of the Year Sarah Wilhite led the Gophers with 25 kills on 70 attempts. She had 10 kills in the first set. Freshman Alexis Hart was second on the team with 11 kills, five of which came in the first set.