THIS WEEK: The No. 11 Stanford men’s volleyball team (2-0, 0-0 MPSF) opens MPSF play on the road at No. 1 BYU (2-0, 0-0 MPSF) Friday, Jan. 15 and Saturday, Jan. 16. Both matches are slated for 6 p.m. PT.
CATCH THE CARDINAL: Live stats and streaming links for the matches can be found on the men’s volleyball schedule page on GoStanford.com. Both matches will also air on BYUtv.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Fans will have access to unique behind-the-scenes content on the team this season by liking Stanford Men’s Volleyball on Facebook or following the team on Twitter (@StanfordMVB) and Instagram (@therealstanfordmvb).
SCOUTING BYU: BYU enters the week as the No. 1 team in the nation, collecting all 20 first-place votes in the poll. The Cougars defeated then-No. 3 Loyola-Chicago (3-1) and then-No. 14 George Mason during the opening weekend. Sophomore Ben Patch led the team with 21 kills on .462 hitting against the Ramblers. Tim Dobbert and Jake Langlois combined for 25 kills versus George Mason. Last season, Stanford defeated BYU twice by 3-1 margins at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal is 15-6 when playing at Smith Fieldhouse.
ROAD WARRIORS: Stanford is scheduled to play eight of its first 10 matches on the road. So far, the Cardinal is 2-0 in its road matches in 2016 compared to a 2-10 mark in matches away from The Farm last season.
LAST TIME OUT: Stanford opened the season with road wins at then-No. 14 Ball State (3-0) and IPFW (3-1) last week. Senior James Shaw controlled the offense, which hit .360 as a team, averaging 11.29 assists per set. Senior Madison Hayden recorded 4.43 kills, 2.29 digs and 5.29 points per set to pace the squad. Redshirt junior Gabriel Vega added 3.71 kills per set, while Conrad Kaminski notched 2.43 kills and 1.43 blocks per set.
IN THE POLL: Stanford moved up to No. 11 in the top-15 of the AVCA Division I-II Men’s Coaches Preseason Poll. The Cardinal is one of 10 MPSF squads ranked in the top 15.
RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS: Stanford has two returning All-Americans on its roster in 2016, including middle blocker Conrad Kaminski (two-time AVCA honorable mention) and setter James Shaw (AVCA Second Team in 2014, honorable mention in 2013). Kaminski entered this year hitting .453 for his career and averaging 1.63 kills and 0.97 blocks per set. Shaw, who missed half of last season due to injuries, came into the season posting 10.20 assists per set for his career, while also notching 1.55 digs and 0.93 kills per set.
2015 RECAP: After losing five seniors, including three All-Americans, to graduation last season the 2015 Cardinal knew it would be a transition year with several players taking the court in new roles. Couple that with nagging injuries to All-America setter James Shaw, which kept him out more than half the season, and Stanford found itself fighting adversity and searching for its identity throughout the season. With a final record of 10-18 and 7-15 in the MPSF (9th), Stanford missed the postseason for the first time since 2007, head coach John Kosty’s inaugural year at the helm of the program.
FRESH FACES: Freshmen Jordan Ewert (Antioch, Calif.) and Ryan Smith (Aledo, Texas) were named AVCA First Team High School All-Americans. Stanford was one of four teams nationally with two selections to the first team. Russell Dervay (Virginia Beach, Va.), Matt Klassen (Elm Grove, Wis.) and Chris Moore (Lake Mary, Fla.) round out the Cardinal’s freshman class.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION: Stanford had several players gain international experience over the summer. Redshirt sophomore Kevin Rakestraw and sophomore Kyle Dagostino were members of the United States’ World University Games roster, which competed in in Gwangju, South Korea in July. Senior Conrad Kaminski nabbed a spot on the U.S. Pan American Team, which played in Toronto, Canada, while freshman Jordan Ewert was a member of the U.S. Boys’ Youth National Team. Eweret, who was coached by Cardinal associate head coach Ken Shibuya, finished seventh at the 2015 FIVB Boys’ U19 World Championship in Argentina.
HEAD COACH JOHN KOSTY: Stanford head coach John Kosty is in his 10th season at the helm of the Cardinal program and his 26th overall on staff. He is 157-109 in his career and has guided Stanford to the 2010 NCAA national championship and the 2014 NCAA finals. The Cardinal has produced a first team AVCA All-America selection in seven of the past eight seasons under Kosty.