In a top-10 women’s volleyball showdown, the No. 2 Texas Longhorns (3-0) host the No. 6 Stanford Cardinal (3-1) on Sunday at the Moody Center in the program’s first home game in the 2025 season.
It’s a powerhouse matchup between two of the best volleyball programs in the country, an historic rivalry that boasts 14 combined national championships and 38 Final Four appearances. Over the last 13 years, the Horns or the Cardinal have played for eight national championships. But Stanford has typically
held the edge in the all-time series, winning 25 of the previous 36 meetings.
Well-established Cardinals to keep an eye on starts with senior outside hitter Ella Rubin with 34 kills, eight aces, 37 digs, and eight blocks after an All-American season in 2024, becoming the 23rd player in program history to record 1,000 career kills while ranking third in the ACC in points per set (4.54) and was fourth in kills per set (3.93). Sophomore setter Taylor Yu’s defense shines with 28 digs and five blocks and leads the team offensively with 108 assists. Stanford’s true freshman middle blocker Erica Sayer has made defensive noise with 15 blocks and has helped the offense with 28 kills this 2025 season.
The only loss on the 2025 season for Stanford has been to No. 1 Nebraska with Sunday’s match against Texas representing the the third ranked team the Cardinal have played thus far.
For the Longhorns, Sunday’s match will also be the third ranked battle for the Horns in the 2025 season. Junior outside hitter Torrey Stafford enters the game with momentum after recording a career-high 24 kills in Wednesday’s win over Rice as junior setter Ella Swindle continues to lead the Longhorns with 87 assists.
First serve is at noon Central on ESPN.
