Dec. 3, 2005
Stanford, Ca - The Santa Clara women's volleyball team, ranked 15th in the season, advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament with a 23-30, 30-19, 30-27, 31-29 upset victory over fifth-ranked Stanford on Saturday night at Maples Pavilion.
It was the first time in 20 meetings that Santa Clara has beaten Stanford.
The Broncos hit .393, the best hitting percentage by a Stanford opponent this year. Five Santa Clara hitters hit in double figures led by Kim McGiven with 19 kills, and Annalisa Muratore with 16. Kristin Richards led Stanford with 23 kills. Stanford hit .224.
"Santa Clara played well," said Stanford head coach John Dunning. "I'm proud of our team. We went through a lot this year. We didn't play our best tonight, but give a lot of credit to Santa Clara. It's a tough way to end the season."
In game one, Stanford jumped to a 7-2 lead, but back came Santa Clara with a 12-7 run to tie the match at 14-14. At 19-19, the Cardinal pulled away with five straight points. Then at 28-23, an attack error by Santa Clara and a kill by freshman middle hitter Foluke Akinradewo sealed Stanford's game one (30-23) victory. Each team hit .400.
Santa Clara fought back in game two to score a decisive 30-19 decision. Stanford never led as the Broncos jumped to a 10-5 lead. The lead later expanded to nine points on five occasions. The game ended on a kill by Kim McGiven. Santa Clara hit .474 compared to 0.57 for Stanford.
Like game two, Santa Clara was able to control the early portions of game three and took a 12-7 lead. The lead extended to six points at 24-18 when the Cardinal changed the momentum. A 9-3 Stanford run tied the match at 27-27. But Santa Clara refused to fold. Three straight points by Crystal Matich, and attack error by the Cardinal, and a kill by Annalisa Muratore gave the Broncos a 30-27 game three decision.
In game four, the Cardinal jumped to a 6-1 lead. But Santa Clara tied the game at 11-11. Stanford countered with a 5-0 run. The Broncos fought back to tie the game at 24-24, and again at 25-25. Santa Clara went ahead for good on two Stanford hitting errors. The Cardinal tied the match at 27-27, at 28-28, and again at 29-29. But the game (31-29) and match ended on a kill by Muratore and a hitting error by Stanford. "I am so proud of this group," said Santa Clara head coach Jon Wallace. "The team was tough, and it showed on the court. Tonight we put it together. We're young, so we still can improve. It was fun."
Stanford ends the 2005 season with a 26-6 record. Santa Clara (25-4) advances to the Palo Alto Regional on Dec. 9-10 at Maples Pavilion.
Stanford (26-6) 30 19 27 29
Santa Clara (25-4) 23 30 30 31