THIS WEEK: The No. 13 Stanford men’s volleyball team opens the 2016 season on the road at No. 14 Ball State on Friday, Jan. 8 at 4:30 p.m. PT. The Cardinal will also face IPFW on Saturday, Jan. 9 at 4 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.
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 BALL STATE: Ball State enters the 2016 season ranked 14th nationally and was selected to finish fourth among the nine MIVA programs in the league’s annual preseason poll. The Cardinals went 13-16 in 2015. Sophomore middle attacker Matt Walsh was one of 10 players named to the 2016 Preseason All-MIVA Team. Walsh finished his freshman campaign ranked third in the nation with a 1.39 blocks per set and was second on the Ball State offense with a .384 attack percentage (1.65 kps).
SCOUTING IPFW: IPFW was 18-12 overall and is receiving votes in the AVCA preseason poll. The Mastodons begin the 2016 season under the direction of first-year head coach Ryan “Rock” Perrotte. Luis Bertran and Andrew Sellan were named to the Preseason All-MIVA Team. Additionally, Bertran was named the Preseason Libero of the Year, while the Mastodons were tabbed sixth in the preseason poll.
ROAD WARRIORS: Stanford is scheduled to play eight of its first 10 matches on the road, including opening MPSF play at top-ranked BYU on Jan. 15-16.
EXHIBITION SUCCESS: Stanford hosted the University of Saskatchewan for two exhibition matches on Dec. 29-30 at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal won both outings by a 3-1 margin, hitting .341 as a team. Senior Conrad Kaminski averaged 3.00 kills on .821 hitting and 1.25 blocks per set. Senior setter James Shaw controlled the offense with 10.00 assists, while also registering 1.62 blocks, 1.25 kills and 1.25 digs per set.
IN THE POLL: Stanford opens the 2016 campaign ranked No. 13 in the top-15 of the AVCA Division I-II Men’s Coaches Preseason Poll. The Cardinal is one of nine 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 is 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, has posted 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 155-109 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.
