Kentucky Volleyball faces No. 4 Louisville and No. 2 Stanford this week

Kentucky Volleyball’s schedule is no joke. Especially when you have to play two of the top-ranked teams in the nation: No. 4 Louisville on Wednesday and No. 2 Stanford on Saturday.

Only one of the two matches takes place at the newly renovated Historic Memorial Coliseum, and that’s Wednesday’s matchup against the Cardinals. Unfortunately, you’d have to make the trip to Palo Alto to support the ‘Cats in person against Stanford, but I hear California is beautiful this time of year.

As it stands, Kentucky is 6-3 on the season, with its most recent loss coming from No. 7 Purdue on Saturday. The undefeated Boilermakers took down the ‘Cats in four (21-25, 25-13, 25-23, 25-16) in Dallas, Texas. Just the day before on Friday the 13th, Kentucky defeated SMU 3-0 (25-23, 26-24, 25-21). Now, Kentucky is looking to defend the state on Wednesday in Lexington for the Battle of the Bluegrass. The ‘Cats have yet to secure a top-10 victory (0-3) this season. Fortunately, they could come out with two by the end of the week.

Kentucky dropped out of the AVCA Coaches’ Poll Top 10 after falling to Purdue. The ‘Cats were overtaken by No. 10 Kansas and now sits at No. 11 in the poll.

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No. 4 Louisville Cardinals – Wednesday, Sept. 18

Louisville has been one of the best teams in collegiate volleyball for years, boasting multiple Olympic qualifiers, a current 7-1 record, and a national championship run ending in 2022 after a 3-0 loss to Texas in the finals. The Cardinals might be Kentucky’s worst enemy, but they can definitely play ball.

Louisville’s only loss this season comes from No. 7 Penn State. The Nittany Lions swept the Cards in Pennsylvania on Sept. 3. As luck would have it, Kentucky played Penn State not long afterward. The ‘Cats and the Lions battled it out at Memorial Coliseum on Friday, Sept. 6 to begin the Kentucky Invitational. Penn State reverse-swept Kentucky in an intense 3-2 match (19-25, 23-25, 26-24, 25-22, 15-8). So, it should give the ‘Cats some confidence knowing that they performed better than Louisville did against the Nittany Lions.

The Wildcats and Cardinals face off on Wednesday, Sept. 18 at 7:00 p.m. EST at Memorial Coliseum. Or, you can catch the historic “Battle of the Bluegrass” on ESPN.

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The Battle of the Bluegrass.

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Red vs. Blue.

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Kentucky vs. Louisville.

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Wednesday. 7pm. ESPN.

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— Kentucky Volleyball (@KentuckyVB) September 16, 2024

No. 2 Stanford – Saturday, Sept. 21

Then, on Saturday, the ‘Cats travel to Palo Alto, California to take on their second top-five opponent of the week: the Stanford Cardinal. Much like Purdue, Stanford has yet to lose a game this season, boasting a 7-0 record. On Wednesday, however, Stanford takes on No. 5 Nebraska. The ‘Cats previously fell to the Huskers, 3-1, in this season’s opener at the AVCA First Serve Showcase in Louisville.

To open its season, Stanford swept then-No. 6 Texas at home (3-0; 25-16, 25-21, 25-22). The Cardinal have shined offensively against each of its opponents, racking up 379 total kills compared to 296 allowed. The team hits on a .313 clip, ranking them fourth in the nation, only behind No. 10 Kansas, No. 3 Penn State, and No. 1 Pittsburgh. Kentucky, on the other hand, is ranked at 35th with a .263 hitting percentage.

It’s safe to say the ‘Cats have a tough remaining schedule heading into SEC play at the end of September. First serve for Kentucky versus Stanford takes place at 10:30 p.m. EST on ESPN2.