April 21, 2004

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Palo Alto Online

Magical finish for Stanford gymnastics

by Rick Eymer

The magic continued through the final routine for the Stanford women's gymnastics team on Friday.

After a slow start, Stanford continued to improve with every meet, setting new standards for the program along the way.

With a third-place finish in the NCAA Championships - the school's best-ever showing - at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion, Stanford established itself as one of the premier women's gymnastics programs in the country under third-year coach Kristen Smyth.

"This whole year has been magical," said Smyth. "It really has been a storybook season. This team has accomplished so much, winning the Pac-10 title, winning a regional title and now finishing third at nationals."

Stanford tied Alabama at the NCAA Super Six meet, each with a score of 197.125. Host UCLA won the team title with a score of 198.125.

Seniors Kendall Beck, Caroline Fluhrer, Shelly Goldberg, Lise Léveillé and Lindsay Wing have accomplished more than any other class in program history.

"These five seniors, it's amazing what they have accomplished," said Smyth. "It's historical. They have put Stanford women's gymnastics on the map as a national power with what they have accomplished. There are no words for what they have meant to the program and for Stanford. This is a testament to them and it sets the table for the future."

Another solid performance on the balance beam, where Stanford is ranked second in the nation, set the stage for the Cardinal. Wing scored a 9.925 in the event, with Léveillé and sophomore Natalie Foley each scoring 9.875.

Fluhrer and Léveillé each scored 9.900 in the floor exercise, while Fluhrer registered a 9.900 on the vault, followed by Jessica Louie and Léveillé at 9.925. Foley scored a 9.900.

The Cardinal finished the meet on the uneven bars where they tallied a team score of 49.200, helped by sophomore Glyn Sweets, who scored a 9.775.

Léveillé finished fifth in the all-around with a 39.575, while Fluhrer finished seventh with a score of 39.500. Foley tied for ninth with a 39.400.

"It's so exciting to finish third," said Wing. "It was awesome. It was more about enjoying the competition and enjoying being with each other. This whole season, we've become so close as a team."

Stanford advanced to the Super Six by tying Florida for the top score in Session I on Thursday, each scoring a 196.850.

Smyth was named the National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches (NACGC) Coach of the Year and Stanford earned 5 All-American awards, which nearly doubles the previous program-best of eight, which the Cardinal earned last season.

Léveillé and Foley each earned five All-American awards, while Wing collected three and Fluhrer had two.

"This award (NACGC Coach of the Year) really recognizes the program and how far it has come," said Smyth. "It really is a tribute to my coaching staff, to the student-athletes, the athletic administration at Stanford, and everyone who has contributed to the success of the program."

Fluhrer, Wing and Foley competed in the NCAA individual competition on Saturday, with Foley placing third on the vault.

Fluhrer finished fifth in the floor exercise, and Wing was sixth on the balance beam.

Stanford assistant coach Larissa Fontaine is the only Stanford gymnast to have captured an NCAA individual event final, winning the vault in 1998.
Women's tennis

Top-ranked Stanford didn't let the weather slow its march toward another Pac-10 title on Saturday.

After a near two-hour rain delay, the Cardinal beat host USC, 7-0, to secure its 17th consecutive conference crown.

Stanford (8-0, 23-0) competes at the Pac-10 Individual tournament and Invitational beginning Thursday in Ojai, Calif. The NCAA tournament selections will be announced on Wednesday, May 5, on ESPN News.

Senior Lauren Barnikow (23-0) and freshman Theresa Logar (22-0) each finished undefeated in the regular season.

Barnikow carries an 82-13 career mark into the postseason. She currently ranks 13th on the Stanford career list with the possibility of moving up to eighth all-time should the Cardinal reach the NCAA title match and Barnikow wins all her matches along the way.

Her single-season record currently matches Patty Fendrick-McCain (1987), Laura Granville (2000) and Teryn Ashley (1997) for 29th on the all-time single-season list. By reaching the championship match, Barnikow has a shot at tying Julie Scott (29-1 in 1997) for the No. 1 spot.

Lauren Kalvaria (2001) and Debbie Graham (1989) have the best unbeaten records in Stanford history, each at 27-0.

Senior Emilia Anderson (17-2) is just behind Barnikow on the career wins list with 77, tying Fendrick-McCain and Sandra Birch for 14th.

Erin Burdette is 66-6 in three years and Alice Barnes is 47-1 in her first two years.

The No. 1 doubles team of Barnikow and Burdette won twice to run their record to an impressive 20-1 on the year.

Stanford beat UCLA, 5-2, on Friday.
Men's tennis

Stanford handed Dick Gould a victory in his final regular-season match as head coach and it was a doozy as the 11th-ranked Cardinal stunned No. 3 USC, 5-2, on Saturday at the Taube Tennis Center.

The victory knocked USC into a first-place tie with UCLA in the Pac-10. Stanford (6-2, 16-7) finished third.

The Cardinal head to the Pac-10 Individual Championships in Ojai, Calif. beginning Thursday.

Stanford won five of the six singles matches to claim the upset. Sam Warburg and Phil Sheng each recovered from first-set losses to claim victories, while K.C. Corkery, James Wan and Carter Morris each winning in single sets.

Gould has won 773 matches at Stanford, and captured 17 NCAA championships.

Stanford lost, 4-3, to visiting No. 4-ranked UCLA on Friday.
Women's water polo

Second-ranked Stanford secured its hold on second place in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation with a 5-3 victory over No. 3 UCLA on Sunday in Los Angeles.

Stanford (9-1, 17-3) took a 2-0 lead in the first five minutes on goals from freshman Christina Hewko and Palo Alto grad Laurel Champion.

After the Bruins tied the contest, Alison Gregorka scored the go-ahead goal, and Katie Hansen and Kelty Luber each added a goal.

The Cardinal travel to San Jose State on Friday at 4 p.m. for their last regular-season game. The MPSF tournament begins on April 30.
Track and field

Freshman Arianna Lambie, competing in only her second collegiate 1,500 meters, broke her own freshman school record with a time of 4:16.89 to highlight Stanford competition on Sunday at the Mt. Sac Relays in Walnut.

Lambie's time was also seventh-best in school history.

Several Stanford competitors reached the NCAA regional qualifying standards, including freshman Katy Trotter in the 1,500 meters (4:26.06), freshman Janice Davis in the 200 meters (23.95), Jacob Gomez in the 1,500 meters (3:46.53) and Andrew Powell in the 1,500 meters (3:46.90). Pac-10 qualifiers included freshman Joaquin Chapa in the 1,500 meters (3:49.90), freshman Janice Davis in the 100 meters (11.82), freshman Ashley Purnell in the 100 meters (11.97) and 200 meters (24.39), Nashonme Johnson in the 200 meters (24.18) and Lindsey Johnson in the 400 meter hurdles (61.71).

In the men's 5,000 meters on Saturday, five Stanford runners achieved season-bests and all qualified for NCAA regional competition. Louis Luchini, a ten-time All-American, produced the team's best time of the day with a career-best 13:25.19. Luchini bested the previous school record of 13:27.31 by Brad Hauser in 2000.

Jonathon Riley won the race in 13:21.11. Ryan Hall, competing in his first collegiate 5,000 meters, was timed in 13:45.00, the eighth-best time in school history. Chris Emme achieved a season-best time of 14:01.61 while Seth Hejny was timed in 14:12.25 and Neil Davis at 14:13.84.

In women's competition, Alicia Craig ran a 15:31.15 while Sara Bei ran 15:26.21 in the 5,000 meters to both qualify for the NCAA regional.

Jill Camarena registered another victory in the shot put on Friday night at the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational. Camarena, a six-time All-American, had a throw of 55-10 1/2, her second-best effort of the year.

Two other Stanford runners qualified for the postseason as freshman Keisha Gaines ran the fifth-best time in school history with a 54.43 in the 400 meters, an NCAA regional qualifying time, while Davis ran 54.84, a Pac-10 qualifying standard.

Jessica Pluth achieved an NCAA Regional mark with a throw of 188-2 in the hammer, a season-best.

At the California Invitational Decathlon Championships at Azusa Pacific College, Nicholas Taylor recorded a career-high 6,326 points to place 14th among 28 competitors. Palo Alto grad Timi Wusu finished ninth with 6,139 points at the Mt. Sac Relays Decathlon Championships. Wusu's top effort among ten events was 785 points in the high jump.
Softball

Senior Dana Sorensen threw a one-hit shutout on Sunday as No. 9 Stanford completed a two-game sweep of visiting Arizona State with a 4-0 victory.

Sorensen and Laura Severson combined to beat the Sun Devils, 7-0, on Saturday.

Top-ranked Arizona beat the Cardinal, 8-0, on Friday night.

The Cardinal (5-4, 34-11) travel to UCLA for a 1 p.m. on Friday.

Sorensen, who was forced to leave Saturday's game in the sixth inning when she was hit in the leg by a line drive, faced one hitter over the minimum and struck out 10 to improve to 21-6 on the year.

Catalina Morris, Jessica Allister and Lauren Lappin drove in runs for Stanford.

While Sorensen already holds most of the Stanford pitching records, Allister has been putting together one of the top offensive seasons in school history.

Her 15 doubles is one shy of Kira Ching for seventh on the all-time single-season list, and her 42 career doubles ranks her fifth all-time, two shy of Ching's 44.

Allister has five home runs this season, and 25 for her career, third on the all-time list. She also has 142 career RBI, fourth on the career list.

Allister is hitting .346 with 29 RBI and a .417 on base percentage this season. She has a team-high 76 total bases.

There are at least three reasons why Allister is enjoying such a productive offensive season: Jackie Rhinehart, Morris and Lappin, three of the Cardinal hitters who surround her in the batting order.

Rhinehart has a team-high 56 hits, .389 batting average and .422 on base percentage. In addition, she has been successful on 11 of 13 stolen base attempts.

Lappin is batting .320 with two homers and 32 RBI, and Morris is hitting .311 with four homers and 30 RBI.

Katherine Hoffman has 16 stolen bases in 20 attempts this year. Only Olympian Jessica Mendoza has stolen more bases in a season for Stanford.
Men's golf

Stanford shot a final round of 287 on Sunday at the U.S. Intercollegiate on the Stanford Golf Course to finish in a tie for fifth place with a three-round score of 872. UCLA won the tournament with a 14-under par 838.

Stanford's Kyle Gentry (69-72-69) and Bruin Travis Johnson tied for fourth individually with a three-under par 210.

The Cardinal competes at the Pac-10 championships beginning Monday.
Women's lacrosse

Stanford split two road contests, beating Davidson, 26-5, on Sunday after losing to Duke, 9-5, on Saturday.

Sparked by three first-half goals from senior Abbi Hills, Stanford (8-6) raced to a 9-0 lead after were never challenged against Davidson.

Juniors Nina Pantano, Claire Calzonetti, and Julia Calzonetti each added two goals.

Senior goalkeeper Christina Saikus recorded four saves, while sophomore Kate Horowitz had three saves.

The 20th-ranked Cardinal hosts Loyola on Saturday in the final home game of the season.
Men's volleyball

Stanford dropped a five-game match to visiting Pacific, 24-30, 21-30, 30-27, 30-21, 15-10, on Saturday and failed to qualify for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation playoffs as a result.

The 10th-ranked Cardinal finished 6-16 in conference play, 9-18 overall.

Craig Buell had 14 kills, while David Vogel and Nick Manov each added 13. Kevin Hansen recorded a team-high 51 assists and Jeremy Jacobs had a game-high 17 digs.
Crew

In varying conditions of headwind and rain of day two of the Stanford Invitational at Redwood Shores, the Cardinal men's teams were beaten by Oregon State in all three races.

Stanford races against UC Davis on Saturday.

The Stanford women raced in three events at the Knecht Cup Regatta. The Lightweight Varsity eight finished sixth, while the Novice eight finished third.

Next up for the Cardinal Lightweights is dual racing against Cal and St. Mary's at Redwood Shores on Saturday.

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