Publication Date: Wednesday, April 13, 2005
STANFORD ROUNDUP
Softball on pace to shatter marks
Softball on pace to shatter marks
(April 13, 2005) Offensive categories are at risk after No. 8 Cardinal sweeps Washington in key Pacific-10 Conference series
by Rick Eymer
Stanford freshman Michelle Smith added a pair of home runs and seven RBI to her team-leading totals as the eighth-ranked Cardinal beat visiting Washington, 4-3 on Sunday and 6-3 on Saturday, in Pac-10 action over the weekend.
Friday's game against visiting UCLA was rained out.
Stanford (3-2, 28-7) travels to conference leader Oregon State (7-0, 28-6) on Friday at 3 p.m. The Beavers own a 22-game winning streak.
With Smith leading the way, Stanford is on pace to shatter several school records on offense.
The Cardinal is hitting .303 as a team with a .524 slugging percentage. The school record for average is .281 in 1999 and .416 (2002) in slugging percentage. Smith's 12 home runs are two off Jessica Mendoza's single-season mark of 14.
Stanford has hit 42 homers this season, four off the school mark.
Stanford has 13 triples, which already ties the school record set last year. With 47 doubles, it's the ninth-best in history and the 204 runs are already eighth best in school history.
Mendoza, who earned a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics, is the only player at Stanford to ever bat over .400, but senior catcher Leah Nelson (.402) is on pace to join that exclusive club. Lauren Lappin (.383 with a team-leading 36 runs scored) is also threatening.
The Cardinal has outscored its opponents, 204-66, and outhit them, .303-.192.
Freshman Becky McCullough won both games over the weekend and has on 10 of her 11 decisions. She has a 1.63 ERA. Junior Laura Severson (12-4, 1.91) earned her first save.
Smith hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning of Saturday's win, and added a three-run shot in the first on Sunday.
Senior Meghan Sickler drove in two runs on Saturday while Catalina Morris (.327-9-24) had two hits. Jackie Rinehart also drove in a run Sunday.
Track and field
It's just a matter of time before Stanford freshman Erica McLain owns the school record in the women's triple jump -- as early as her next outdoor at Mt. SAC this weekend or perhaps she'll wait for the Big Meet at Stanford on April 23.
McLain, who already owns the indoor triple jump mark (45-7 1-4), would have set a school mark on Saturday at the Texas Relays had her winning leap of 44-4 not been wind-aided. McLain has gone 44-1 1-2 in high school.
Jackie Edwards' 13-year-old Stanford record of 43-4 is safe for a few more days.
The Cardinal women's 400 relay went 44.28, second fastest in school history, and finished fifth in Texas.
The Stanford women's 3,200 meter relay team finished second on Thursday night with an 8:45.48 while Arkansas won the race in 8:38.03.
On Friday, junior Solomon Welch finished third in the men's triple jump with a best of 50-6 3-4. Sophomore Feranmi Okanlami went 48-3 1-4 to finish 11th.
Freshman Deborah Akinniyi was 14th in the women's triple jump at 38-11 1-2.
At the Rafer Johnson/Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational at UCLA, Stanford's Sarah Hopping and Katy Elsbury finished second and third in the women's hammer throw. Hopping's best throw was 184-5, while Elsbury threw 183-7. UCLA's Jessica Cosby won the event with a throw of 208-5.
Samantha Shepard and Melissa Yunghans each gained NCAA Regional qualifying status on Saturday at UCLA. Shepard went 12-5 1-2 in the pole vault while Yunghans threw the shot put 48-4 1-2.
Michael Robertson threw the discus 195-6, a regional qualifying mark and third-best in school history, to finish fourth.
At the Brutus Hamilton Memorial Invitational in Berkeley, Arianna Lambie qualified for regionals with a time of 2:09.13 in the 800 meters.
Men's volleyball
Stanford helped itself toward a possible Mountain Pacific Sports Federation playoff berth with a 30-27, 36-34, 31-29 victory over host Pacific on Friday night.
Junior Chris Ahlfeldt had a team-high 12 kills and hit at a .474 clip to help Stanford (10-10, 11-12) win for the fourth time in five matches.
The 10th-ranked Cardinal host Brigham Young in a pair of matches on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. in Maples Pavilion that will complete the regular season.
Senior David Vogel and junior Ben Reddy each had 11 kills, while senior Kevin Hansen recorded 41 assists and a team-high 10 digs.
Women's water polo
Stanford remained tied for third in the MPSF after winning twice on the road over the weekend.
The third-ranked Cardinal (7-2, 15-4) beat Arizona State, 6-3, on Saturday as Scotti Shafer scored three goals, and then beat host San Diego State, 6-2, on Sunday. Katie Hansen and Hannah Luber each scored twice.
Stanford hosts top-ranked and unbeaten UCLA (9-0, 24-0) on Friday at 7 p.m.
Men's tennis
Stanford completes The Stanford Challenge on Saturday when Cal visits Taube Tennis Center for the final regular-season match of the year at 1 p.m.
Stanford (4-2, 12-8) beat visiting USC, 5-1, on Sunday after losing to UCLA, 4-3, on Saturday.
Against the Trojans, senior Sam Warburg came from behind in his victory over No. 10 ranked Jamil Al-Agba at the No. 1 singles position, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Junior KC Corkery won at the No. 2 spot 6-4, 6-2.
The Cardinal won the top three singles matches against the sixth-ranked Bruins but could not pull off the upset.
Men's gymnastics
Stanford failed to qualify for the NCAA championships as a team; finishing fourth in Thursday night's qualifying sessions at West Point in New York.
The top three teams from each of the two sessions advanced to Friday night's championships.
The Cardinal did produce four top-three individual finishes and qualified five athletes for the finals.
Freshman David Sender reached in the pommel horse by placing fifth with a 9.200. Freshman Jason Shen tied for eighth with a 9.100 to advance.
Sender also qualified in the rings, on the vault, on the floor, and parallel bars.
Freshmen Sho Nakamori, sophomore Dylan Carney and junior Nate Downs also qualified for the finals.
Sender finished 10th overall on the parallel bars with an 8.950.
Women's gymnastics
Stanford finished fourth at the NCAA West Regional in Seattle with a score of 194.750, missing a trip to the NCAA championships for the first time in five years.
Freshman Tabitha Yim was fifth in all-around and earned an automatic spot in the NCAA individual championships.
Stanford recorded a season-high 49.000 on the balance beam with freshman Lauren Elmore recording a personal best 9.900.
Women's golf
Stanford shot a 291 on Sunday in the Peg Bernard Collegiate on the Stanford Golf Course to finish third with a two-round total of 593.
Washington won the tournament with a 587, followed by Washington State (590). Fresno State and San Francisco tied for fourth (607).
The Cardinal was led by Kelly Husted, who tied for fourth with a 145 (74-71). Teammate Jennifer Tangtiphaiboontana tied for eighth with a 147 (72-75).
Washington State's Kim Welch defended her title with a 2-under-par 140.
Men's golf
Stanford finished 12th at the ASU Thunderbird Invitational after recording a 302 on the final round on Sunday on the Karsten Golf Course in Tempe.
UNLV won the tournament with a 7-over-par 859.
Senior Kevin Blue led the Cardinal, tying for 18th with a 217 (70-76-71) for the tournament.
Women's lacrosse
Senior Nina Pantano scored a goal with 18 seconds remaining to give Stanford a 6-5 victory over host Notre Dame on Sunday.
The Cardinal (7-5) host Yale on Friday, and then hosts Denver in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match on Sunday.
Stanford surrendered 10 goals in the first half en route to dropping a 16-3 decision to host Northwestern on Friday.
Kelsey Twist, Megan McClain and Sarah Bach scored for the Cardinal.
Crew
Stanford's No. 5 men's and No. 10 women's varsity eights each posted victories to close out competition at the Windermere Collegiate Crew Classic on the Redwood Shores Lagoon on Sunday.
The Cardinal men finished 2-1, including victories over No. 9 Yale and No. 8 Dartmouth.
The women defeated Clemson to finish the regatta an undefeated 3-0.
E-mail a friend a link to this story. | 
