No. 2 Stanford spoils No. 7 Texas' home opener, 2022 national title celebration

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The No. 7 Texas Longhorns volleyball fell in its home opener Sunday in straight sets to No. 2 Stanford.

The day started great with the 2022 national championship banner raising after the Longhorns claimed the crown last season, but the Cardinal came into Gregory Gym and quickly turned the mood. Set scores were 25-23, 25-20, 25-15.

Texas (2-2) was led by Madisen Skinner with 12 kills while Jenna Wenaas chipped in 11. Bella Bergmark had five kills and Asjia O'Neal had four. Texas was held to a .130 hitting percentage while the Cardinal hit an impressive .396. Stanford's Kendall Kipp poured in a match-high 15 kills with seven block assists and Elia Rubin had 14 kills. McKenna Vicini had eight block assists for the Cardinal who had 13 total blocks to Texas' six.

The Longhorns had 20 attack errors to Stanford's seven and the Cardinal notched 47 kills to Texas' 34.

Texas went on a 9-1 rally to grab a 16-15 lead in the first set, but the Cardinal fought back after blowing the lead. Stanford went up 23-20 following a Kipp kill and held on to win the set. The Cardinal cruised to victory from there in the final two sets.

The Longhorns continue a 5-match homestand at 5 p.m., Friday, against Florida Gulf Coast.