Sept. 10, 2005
Boulder, Co - Homeward Bound, Home Cooking, Home Sweet Home.
The third-ranked Stanford women's volleyball team concluded its seven match, eleven day road trip with a 30-20, 30-22, 30-20 victory on Saturday afternoon over Creighton University at the Colorado Invitational. Freshman outside hitter Cynthia Barboza led the Cardinal attack with 19 kills (.459). Stanford hit .282 as a team while Creighton was held to a .092 percentage.
In game one, Creighton jumped to a 5-2 lead, and maintained the lead until the Cardinal finally gained the advantage at 12-11. From there, both teams fought for the lead. In all, the game was tied eight times. With the game tied 15-15, Stanford finally gained control with five straight points. A three point run gave Stanford a 28-20 lead, and the Cardinal then closed out the game (30-20) on kills by Kristin Richards and Foluke Akinradewo. Stanford hit .375. Freshman outside hitter Cynthia Barboza provided seven kills while Nji Nnamani checked in with six more. Creighton was held to a .222 hitting percentage.
Stanford led from start to finish in game two. The Cardinal led by as many as ten points, 21-11. A service error by Creighton gave the Cardinal the game, 30-22. Stanford's defense again proved to be strong, holding Creighton to a .095 hitting percentage. Stanford hit .278.
The victory gives Stanford a seven-match winning streak, and a 8-1 season record. Creighton fell to 4-4.
Game three was similar to game two as the Cardinal led from start to finish. This time, Stanford jumped to a 2-0 lead, and gradually extended the lead throughout the game. At 29-20, Stanford ended the game (30-20) and the match on a block solo by Michelle Mellard.
Akinradewo was named tournament MVP while Richards earned all-tournament honors. Akinradewo tallied 41 kills (.459) and six blocks in the three wins over Colorado, Marquette and Creighton.
The Cardinal opens home play at the Stanford Invitational (Sept. 15-17) at Maples Pavilion.
Stanford (8-1)303030
Creighton (4-4)2022 20
Cardinal Catalogue:
This was the first meeting between Stanford and Creighton ... All-American outside hitter Kristin Richards is nearing the 1,000 mark in kills and digs ... With five kills on Saturday against Creighton, Richards now has 985 kills and 939 digs in three-plus seasons at Stanford ... The Stanford women's volleyball program has announced that at the Stanford Invitational (Sept. 15-17) and matches against USC (Sept. 23) and UCLA (Sept. 24) at Maples Pavilion, monetary donations will be accepted and delivered to the Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund to help flood victims.
Ticket Tale
With enthusiasm for the women's volleyball program at an all-time high, season tickets for Stanford Women's Volleyball are now on sale ... The Cardinal will have a 12-game home schedule during the regular season ... The home slate includes matches against second-ranked Washington (Oct. 8, 7:00 p.m.), seventh-ranked USC (Sept. 23, 7:00 p.m.), 13th-ranked UCLA (Sept. 24, 7:00 p.m.), 15th-ranked UC Santa Barbara (Sept. 17, 5:00 p.m., Stanford Invitational), 17th ranked Arizona (Nov. 11, 7:00 p.m.), 19th-ranked California (Nov. 18, 7:00 p.m.), and 23th-ranked St. Mary's (Sept. 15, 7:00 p.m., Stanford Invitational) ... Stanford reserved (lower) season tickets are available for as low as $80 ... General Admission (end zone and upper) are available for as low as $55 ... For more information on Stanford season tickets, go to Stanford Women's Volleyball home page at www.gostanford.com, and click on "tickets" on the left side of the page. Or call 1-800-STANFORD.
Daily Diary
Day 11 and this long, long road trip has FINALLY come to a successful end with a victory over Creighton on Saturday at the Colorado Invitational in Boulder ... After breakfast, the team quickly packed all its luggage and checked out of the hotel which has served as home in Boulder, Colorado, since Wednesday ... The team will be back home late Saturday night after what was a highly successful seven-match, eleven day road trip to the East Coast and the Midwest ... Not only did the Cardinal score seven wins in seven matches, the trip proved to be highly successful in further enhancing Stanford's already strong team chemistry, and according to head coach John Dunning, a great educational experience in seeing other parts of the United States.
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