Slideshow Ivana Vanjak (7) and Audriana Fitzmorris (24) are ready for Thursday's national semifinal against Minnesota. Photo by Karen Ambrose Hickey/isiphotos.com Previous Next

The ninth-ranked and sixth-seeded Stanford women's volleyball team meets a familiar opponent in top-ranked and second-seeded Minnesota in the NCAA national semifinals on Thursday at Columbus, Ohio.

No. 1 seed Nebraska (31-2) and No. 4 seed Texas (26-4) play in the other semifinal, with the winners meeting in the national championship match on Saturday.

The Cardinal (25-7) met the Golden Gophers (29-4) early in the season, handing them a four-set loss at Maples Pavilion.

A lot has happened since then, of course, with the maturation of the freshmen class at the top of the list.

Minnesota, which defeated No. 15 seed Missouri and No. 10 seed UCLA at home last week to reach its second straight Final Four, has improved as well.