Sept. 8, 2006
Honolulu, Hawai`i - No. 8 Stanford (5-1) cruised to a 3-0 victory over Fairfield (3-5), 30-13, 30-16, 30-14, for the second win of the weekend at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Challenge. Sophomore Foluke Akinradewo led the squad with 17 kills, while senior Kristin Richards followed with 13. Sophomore Cynthia Barboza posted a season-high .632 hitting percentage, going 12-19. The Cardinal hit a season-high .471 as a team with 58 kills.
Stanford came out strong in game one with three kills from Barboza, running up an early 5-3 lead. Stanford then continued on a 6-0 run with kills from three different players. Junior Franci Girard brought the score to 13-4 with a kill from the middle, then contributed a block with Richards to send the Stags into a timeout, 15-4. Fairfield's Natalie Barba ended a long rally with a short kill to lead the Stags on a 3-0 run, 17-7, but Richards stopped the streak with her fourth kill of the game. Following a Fairfield timeout, the Cardinal pulled out a 2-0 stint to increase its lead, 22-10. Kills from Akinradewo, Barboza and Girard brought the score to 29-10, then Girard put game one away with a kill to the back row, 30-13. Stanford hit .515 as a team in game one with 21 kills, including seven from Akinradewo.
The Cardinal didn't back down in game two, jumping to a 4-0 lead, including three kills from Barboza. The Stags' Lindsay Lee registered a kill to bring the score to 5-2, but a block from senior Michelle Mellard and junior Bryn Kehoe kicked off a 4-1 run for the Cardinal. Freshman Janet Okogbaa then collected her first kill of the match, 10-4, before Stanford took off on another 5-1 streak, including two kills by Akinradewo. Barboza, Kehoe and Richards each collected kills to put the score at 18-8, but Fairfield rallied together a 2-0 run, including a service ace by Lee. Akinradewo later pounded a kill to the right side to put Stanford ahead, 24-13, and ignite a 3-0 run. A sneaky tip from freshman setter Joanna Evans put the game within two points, then Mellard put it away with a kill from the middle. The Cardinal continued to hit .492 through game two.
In game three, a triple block from Okogbaa, Akinradewo and Barboza marked an early 3-1 lead. Stanford's hitters continued to give Fairfield trouble, as Barboza, Akinradewo and Richards contributed kills to bring the Cardinal lead to 11-3. Akinradewo then nailed an attempt from the right side to end a long rally, 12-3. Barboza followed with two service aces as Stanford continued on an 8-0 rout. A cross-court kill from Richards put the Cardinal up, 18-5. The Stags continued to fight back with a kill by Karlie Urbaniak, but sophomore Erin Waller and Okogbaa's back-to-back kills kicked off another 3-0 run to increase the gap, 21-7. Akinradewo tallied two more kills to put the match within reach, but Fairfield didn't back down, stringing together a 3-0 streak. Mellard sealed the Cardinal victory with another kill from the right side, 30-14.
Akinradewo lead the team with four of Stanford's nine blocks. Kehoe collected 46 assists, while freshman Evans also tallied three assists. Richards led the squad with 11 digs, while Barboza followed with nine.
Undefeated so far, the Cardinal will face host No. 9 Hawai`i tomorrow at 7:00 pm (HT) to wrap up the Waikiki Beach Marriott Challenge.