Stanford freshman baseball standout Lonnie Kauppila was both busy and successful last week. Collegiate Baseball and the Pac-10 Conference both took notice and honored the Cardinal second baseman as its national and conference player of the week, following an impressive 15-for-20 week against St. Mary’s and at Washington State.
Kaupplia, who has made just two errors all season at second base, started the week with four hits against the Gaels in Stanford’s 16-14 nonconference win last Tuesday.
In Pullman, Wash., site of the Cardinal’s first Pac-10 series win of the season, Kauppila went 11-for-14 with a six-hit night on a cold Saturday, three-hits on Friday and two hits on Sunday. Kauppila scored eight runs and drove in six for the week. He did not strike out.
Kaupplia, who had been struggling prior to last week, raised his batting average from .196 to .364. The week vaulted the him into sixth place on the Pac-10 hitting chart. He was one of four players named national player of the week.
The No. 11-ranked Cardinal (13-7, 2-1 Pac-10) return to action on Tuesday night when it hosts San Jose State (19-8) for a 5:30 p.m. game at Sunken Diamond.
Football
Stanford’s Cardinal and White Spring Game is set for this Saturday, April 9, at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. and admission is free.
Stanford’s new head coach, David Shaw, meanwhile received a commitment from Alex Carter, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound safety from Briar Woods High in Ashburn, Va. According to scout.com, Carter is a three-star athlete ranked No. 21 at his position nationally.
Men’s golf
Stanford was in fifth place on Monday at the 36 hole mark of the Morris Williams Invitational being held at the University of Texas Golf Course in Austin, Texas.
The Cardinal shot a team score of 312 in its morning round on Monday, but improved by 13 strokes in the afternoon to card a 299. At 611, Stanford trailed first-place and host Texas (296-304-600) by 11 strokes heading into the final round. TCU was in second place at 601, followed closely by Arkansas (604) and Texas Tech (610).
Stanford sophomore Andrew Yun was tied for third place at 147 after carding rounds of 73 and 74 on Monday. He had just one birdie on his card in the morning and offset six bogies with three birdies on his afternoon 18.
Men’s gymnastics
Stanford senior Tim Gentry was named the MPSF Co-Gymnast of the Year on Monday. Gentry, who will share the award with Steven Legendre of Oklahoma, led Stanford to the MPSF team title over the weekend.
Gentry is a Stanford co-captain and the leader of a group that is among the favorites to capture the NCAA title on April 14-16.
He is an all-around gymnast who has a season-high of 87.450. Gentry claimed the MPSF individual title on still rings (16.050), while the Cardinal used his score in four other events.
Gentry is currently the national leader on the rings and has a high score of 15.800 this season. He is also among the national leaders in the vault, ranking third with a high score of 16.300. Gentry also ranks in the top-20 nationally on the floor exercise (17th) and parallel bars (tie 20th).
In his career, Gentry is a four-time All-American and a member of the 2009 NCAA Title Team for Stanford. He is a finalist for the 2011 Nissan-Emery Award.
Gentry hopes to complete his Stanford career by leading the Cardinal to an NCAA title in two weeks. He will then pursue his first NCAA Individual title where he will be the favorite on still rings.
Women’s lacrosse
Senior Sarah Flynn was named the MPSF Player of the Week after a big week that included a school record and 14 goals in three games.
Flynn scored 14 goals last week, including a school record seven (on 11 shots) in a win at St. Mary’s. Flynn was also a perfect 5-for-5 on the week with free-position shots and collected five draw controls. The seven goals broke the record of six that was shared by seven people, including current player Lauren Schmidt.
On the season, Flynn now has a team-leading 34 goals. She has moved into fourth on Stanford’s all-time goal-scoring list with 130 and needs just 13 more to tie the Stanford all-time record of 143 set by Megan Burker.
— Palo Alto Online Sports/Stanford Sports Information
— Palo Alto Online Sports/Stanford Sports Information
— Palo Alto Online Sports/Stanford Sports Information