The Stanford softball team takes a breather from Pac-12 Conference play Tuesday, hosting Santa Clara at 6 p.m.
The Cardinal (16-22) will look to snap a 12-game losing streak and extend its winning streak against the Broncos (11-28) to 47 games – a streak that dates to May 3, 1995.
Stanford will look to rebound after a tough extra-innings loss in the series finale against No. 23 Arizona State this past weekend.
Whitney Burks hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to send the game to extra innings but Stanford could not finish the comeback, falling 7-4 in nine innings.
Burks’ homer erased a 4-1 deficit for the Cardinal but the Sun Devils’ Chelsea Gonzales responded with a three-run home run in the top of the ninth to secure the decision for Arizona State.
The defeat spoiled an outstanding effort by Stanford starting pitcher Kiana Pancino, who held the Sun Devils to four runs – three earned – in a career-high 6.0 innings.
Stanford’s defense has been excellent this season and has been particularly impressive recently, committing just two errors in the past 38.0 innings.
The Cardinal has lost 39 consecutive Pac-12 games and are 7-77 in conference play since the beginning of 2014.
Over the same span, Stanford is 69-42 against nonconference competition, a startling contrast that makes a case for the strength of the conference.
Stanford is the only team in the conference without an overall wining record. The Pac-12 has seven of nine teams among the top 25, including three in the top nine.
During its recent losing streak, Stanford lost by three runs or less three times, including once in extra innings.
The Cardinal is 6-10 in games decided by three runs or less.
Despite its 16-22 overall record, the Cardinal ranks 84th (of 295 teams) in the NCAA RPI. Stanford rates in the 70 percentile among Division I teams, higher than 42 other programs with winning records.
The other eight Pac-12 schools are rated among the top 42, with Arizona, Washington, UCLA and Oregon all rated in the top seven.
The Cardinal offense has been productive. Three players are hitting .333 or better, including senior Kylie Sorenson (.352), freshman Teahgan Cowles(.352) and senior Bessie Noll (.333).
Eight Stanford players have yet to make an error this season: Lauren Wegner, Arden Pettit, Noll, Hannah Howell, Alyssa Horeczko, Haley Snyder, Lauren Bertoy and Carolyn Lee.
Women’s diving
Stanford’s Kassidy Cook won the national title in the synchronized 3-meter springboard and qualified for the World Championships on Thursday.
Cook competed at the 2017 USA Diving Synchronized National Championships in Atlanta, Ga. She and her partner, high school sophomore and World Junior champion Maria Coburn, earned a spot at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, with their national title in the synchronized 3-meter springboard.
Coburn, who dives for Longhorn Aquatics, is coached by Stanford grad Dwight Dumais.
The pair topped the field by nearly 50 points with a winning score of 573.15. They won the prelims, but were initially 14 points off the qualifying standard. But several strong dives in the finals made up the deficit and secured their spot in Budapest.
By Stanford Athletics
By Stanford Athletics
By Stanford Athletics