Publication Date: Friday, February 18, 2005
Stanford men hope to keep swim streak intact
Stanford men hope to keep swim streak intact
(February 18, 2005) Cardinal put 38-meet winning skein on line Saturday at Cal
by Rick Eymer
The Stanford seniors have never lost a dual meet, and that streak will be on the line Saturday when the second-ranked Cardinal men's swimming team (3-0 in the Pac-10, 5-0 overall) travel to Berkeley to take on fourth-ranked California (3-0, 8-0) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
In a repeat of last year's meet at Stanford, both teams come into the meet undefeated and among the top teams in the nation. Stanford finished second in the NCAA championships, while Cal was seventh.
This meet counts towards this season's Lexus Gauntlet all-sports contest between Cal and Stanford. The Cardinal currently leads, 32.5-27.5. The Bears would earn five points and tie the Cardinal in the Lexus Gauntlet standings with a win.
Stanford has won 38 consecutive dual meets since losing to Arizona, 124-119, on Jan. 22, 2000. The Cardinal came back to win the Pac-10 meet that season. In fact, the Stanford men swimmers hold the Pac-10 record for consecutive conference titles in any sport with 23.
Stanford features swimmers who rank among the nation's top 10 this season in 11 different events.
Andy Grant holds the third-best time in the 200 free at 1:34.54, while Shaun Phillips has the third best time in the 1,650 free at 15:06.67.
Jayme Cramer is on three lists: fifth-best in the 100 back 1t 47.81, third best in the 100 fly at 47.37, and 10th best in the 200 fly at 1:46.14.
Hongzhe Sun, Gary Marshall and Matt McDonald each are among the tops in two different events.
Sun owns the fifth-best time in the 100 back at 47.72 and sixth fastest in the 200 fly at 1:45.58. Marshall is fourth fastest in the 100 breast at 54.07, and second fastest in the 200 breast at 1:56.70. McDonald is ninth best in the 100 fly at 47.84, and eighth best in the 200 fly at 1:45.91.
The return of Olympians Duje Draganja (Croatia) and Milorad Cavic (Serbia & Montenegro) in January have helped Cal remain undefeated. They joined fellow Olympian Henrique Barbosa (Brazil) to form the nucleus of the free relays, which rank among the tops in the nation. The 200 relay is fourth best and the 400 free relay is second best.
Baseball
Stanford freshman Nolan Gallagher (0-1, 0.90) will get another shot at the third spot in the starting rotation when the sixth-ranked Cardinal travel to undefeated Texas for a three-game series beginning Friday at 12:30 p.m.
Gallagher threw five scoreless innings in Sunday's 7-6 victory over Kansas, earning a no-decision when the Jayhawks rallied to tie the score in the top of the ninth.
Friday's series opener features two of the top pitchers in the nation in Stanford's Mark Romanczuk (2-1, 3.50) and Texas' Randy Boone (1-0, 1.80).
Stanford will use Jeff Gilmore (1-0, 2.25) on Saturday followed by Gallagher on Sunday.
Texas is ranked fourth in the nation by Baseball America, but is top-ranked by three other polls. The Longhorns were the national runner ups a year ago, losing the College World Series to Cal State Fullerton.
The Cardinal (7-2) took two of three from Texas last year and have won four straight regular-season series. They have lost nine of their last 15 games on the road.
Texas (8-0) has a team ERA of 2.12 and hits .315.
Stanford coach Mark Marquess is within three wins of 1,200 for his career. His current record is 1,197-567, ninth among active Division I coaches.
Women's water polo
Third-ranked Stanford hosts Cal State Northridge in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation contest on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The Cardinal (1-0, 4-1) finished third in the Stanford Invitational last weekend, losing only to top-ranked UCLA.
The No. 16 Matadors (0-1, 2-1) have an ambitious schedule this weekend. They are scheduled for a 2 p.m. game at San Jose State and a 7 p.m. game at Sonoma State today before they return to Stanford for their third game in less than 24 hours.
Nancy El-Sakkary led Stanford with eight goals in the Invitational, including three in an 11-4 win over Indiana in the third-place game. Hannah Luber added seven goals.
Men's tennis
Seventh-ranked Stanford (6-0) was scheduled to open against No. 9 Virginia on Thursday in the first round of the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships in Chicago.
Stanford has won more titles (12) since the National Team Indoor Championship began in 1973 than any other school, though the Cardinal will be looking for their first title since 2002.
Stanford Has reached the finals of the tournament 16 times and is making its 30th appearance at the event. The Cardinal are 77-21 at the event.
Fourth-ranked Sam Warburg enters the tournament with an 8-1 mark against ranked opponents, while both KC Corkery and Phil Sheng each remain undefeated in singles play in dual matches.
The top nine ranked teams in the nation are among the 16-team field, including defending national champion Baylor.
Women's gymnastics
Stanford (1-2 in the Pac-10, 1-3) hosts defending NCAA champion UCLA today at 7:30 p.m. in Maples Pavilion.
The Bruins feature three former Olympians in Kristen Maloney, Kate Richardson, and Tasha Schwikert. The three gymnasts make up half of the top six in the national rankings in the all-around, with Maloney topping the list.
The trio of junior Natalie Foley and freshmen Tabitha Yim and Liz Tricase are among the top 10 in several events. Yim is fourth in uneven bars at 9.887, and fifth on the beam at 9.850. Foley is tied with Yim on beam at 9.850, while Tricase is third on the bars with a 9.900.
Foley, an All-American, competed in the all-around for the first time in Stanford's loss to Arizona last weekend.
Men's volleyball
Ninth-ranked Stanford (3-6 in the MPSF, 4-8 overall) continues its road trip with a match at UC Irvine on Saturday at 7 p.m.
The Cardinal were scheduled to meet top-ranked UCLA on Thursday night.
Fifth-year senior setter Kevin Hansen is fourth on Stanford's career list with 4,353 assists. Hansen, a three-time All-MPSF selection, is ninth all-time with a 12.80 assists per game average.
Softball
Sixth-ranked Stanford (6-1) make their first road trip of the season, heading to Tampa, Florida for the South Florida/Wilson Tournament beginning Saturday with games against Hofstra and Jacksonville.
The Cardinal beat Hofstra to earn a trip to the College World Series last year. They meet Seton Hall and South Florida on Sunday and Florida A&M on Sunday.
Freshman Michelle Smith was named Pac-10 Player of the Week after hitting .571 (4-of-7) with three runs scored and four RBI in the Stanford Invitational. She hit two home runs and a triple for a 1.714 slugging percentage.
Lauren Lappin leads Stanford with 13 hits and is batting .619 while Leah Nelson is hitting .550.
Lacrosse
Stanford (1-0, 1-0) travels to St. Mary's for a match today and to UC Davis on Sunday in MPSF competition.
The Cardinal bring a 15-game winning streak over the Gaels to Moraga.
Synchronized swimming
Stanford won dual meets at Florida State last Friday and at Florida on Saturday.
Against the Seminoles, Senior captain Katie Norris won the solo event, while Courtenay Stewart, Sara Lowe, and Samantha Bongiovanni-Duclos won the trio event. The Cardinal pair of Mari Maekawa and Hilary Homenko placed first in the duet competition.
Against the Gators, Stanford won the team event with a final score of 94.16.
Women's sailing
Stanford placed second at the season opener for collegiate women's double-handed sailing on the Ashley River in Charleston last weekend.
Sailing in A-Division, junior Liz Rountree and senior Julie Pitts finished fourth, while sophomore Caroline Young and freshman Evan Brown finished second in B-Division.
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