DALLAS (SMU) – No. 12 SMU volleyball fell to No. 5 Stanford (14-2, 6-1 ACC) Wednesday night at Moody Coliseum, falling for the second time in ACC play, with set scores of 25-22, 25-23, 35-33. With the loss, the Mustangs moved to 13-5 overall and 5-2 in the ACC.
 
The Mustangs played in front of a crowd of 2,761 against the Cardinal, the second largest in program history. 
 
Maya Tabron led SMU's attack, which hit .247 for the match, with 11 kills and nine digs while hitting .400 herself. Naya Shime also had double-digit kills, with ten for the match and a season-high of 11 kills. Celia Cullen neared a double-double with 28 assists and nine digs.

MATCH NOTES:

• The matchup was the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
• There were 44 ties and 20 lead changes throughout the match. 
• SMU Volleyball is now 5-3 at home this season.
• The Mustangs are now 4-3 against ranked opponents this season.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
SET ONE | The Mustangs and Cardinal went back and forth to open the set. Neither team was able to go on a run, resulting in a 10-10 tie after the first 20 points of the match. A three-point run put the Mustangs in front 20-18, which forced a timeout. The run was composed of kills from Tabron and Shime, along with a block from Shime and Okammor. However, Stanford responded with a four straight to take a two-point edge. SMU held on two set points to cut their deficit to one, but Stanford closed out the opening on the third set point to win 25-23.
 
SET TWO | The second set played out similarly to the first set, with a 10-10 tie after the first 20 points. Another late run of three put the Mustangs up two (20-18). Stanford had another impressive response with a four-point swing to take back the lead 22-20. A kill from Wheeler stopped the momentum briefly, but Stanford earned a match point with two straight points. SMU held on again for several set points, but a kill closed out the second frame in their favor, 25-23. Despite the set loss, SM hit a match-best .370 in the second set.  
 
SET THREE | After Stanford took a 2-0 lead to start, the Mustangs swung the momentum with a 4-0 run to go up five (12-7), their largest lead by either team in the match. SMU went up six a few points later (14-9) on an ace from Tabron. However, Stanford rallied four straight to cut the Mustangs lead to one. The clubs traded blows until Stanford's 3-0 run got them to match point. A combined 10 match points ensued before the Cardinal edged the Mustangs 35-33.  
 
SMU LEADERS:
SMU Kills Leader: Maya Tabron (11)
SMU Assist Leader: Celia Cullen (28)
SMU Digs Leader: Naya Shime (11)
SMU Blocks Leader: Natalie Foster/Nnedi Okammor (4)
SMU Ace Leader: Maya Tabron/Natalie Perdue (1)
 
UP NEXT:    
SMU Volleyball will take on Cal at Moody Coliseum on Sunday at 1 p.m. CT on ACCNX. For all things SMU Volleyball, follow the program on Instagram, X, and Facebook.