No. 1 Stanford Is on a 13-Match Win Streak – Can Anyone Stop Them

While everyone was watching Texas this weekend, No. 1 Stanford quietly went to Laguna Beach and reminded the volleyball world exactly why they’re sitting at the top of the rankings.

The Cardinal swept through Day 1 of the Best in the West tournament in stunning fashion, beating No. 10 Long Beach State 4-1 and No. 2 UCLA 3-2 to extend their winning streak to 13 straight matches.

The UCLA match was the one to watch. The Bruins’ top court pair of Sally Perez and Maggie Boyd took down Stanford’s Kelly Belardi and Avery Jackson 21-14 in the first set before a dramatic comeback gave Stanford the edge. It went all the way to a third set on multiple courts before Stanford sealed it 3-2. That’s championship-level volleyball right there.

The pair everyone needs to know about is Belardi and Jackson, who moved to 11-0 after their Friday performance. Eleven wins, zero losses together. In one of the toughest conferences in the country.

Avery Jackson earned USA Volleyball Junior Female Athlete of the Year honors before arriving at Stanford, and also clinched a first-place finish at the FIVB U21 Beach Volleyball World Championships alongside UCLA’s Sally Perez. Yes — the two players on the most talked-about court 1 matchup in college beach volleyball right now are former world championship partners.

Stanford still has Saturday’s matches against No. 4 USC and No. 6 Cal Poly ahead — two teams that have both beaten the Cardinal this season. The road to Gulf Shores just got very interesting.

The 2026 NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship bracket drops April 26, and right now, Stanford looks like the team everyone is going to have to go through. 🏐