Nov. 10, 2006
Stanford, Calif. - After amassing a ten-match conference winning streak, second-ranked Stanford (20-3, 11-2) fell to sixth-ranked USC (22-3, 10-3) tonight, 30-18, 30-24, 33-31. Sophomore middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo led the Cardinal with 15 kills and two blocks, but it wasn't enough as the Trojans hit .315 with 60 kills. Sophomore outside hitter Cynthia Barboza and junior middle blocker Franci Girard also collected nine kills each for the Cardinal.
The Trojans jumped to a brief lead in game one off kills by Taylor Carico and Asia Kaczor, 4-1. Barboza nailed a kill off of the right side, but USC answered with another kill by Kaczor. Junior Franci Girard logged a kill in the middle to kick off a 3-1 run for the Cardinal, 5-4. The Trojans collected back-to-back points to pull ahead, 8-5, but Akinradewo pounded a kill down the middle to end the streak. Following a timeout, Akinradewo collected a kill on the right side, 11-7, but USC pulled out two kills in a row. Barboza and Girard then rallied the Cardinal within three points with kills, 12-15, followed by a block solo from senior Kristin Richards on the right side. The Trojans came out of a timeout to end a long rally with a kill by Kaczor, spurring a 5-1 run to gap the Cardinal, 23-14. Another 4-1 run from the Trojans off kills by Diane Copenhagen and Bethany Johansen later put USC near the win. Stanford fought back with tip from junior Bryn Kehoe, later followed by a kill from Girard on the slide, 28-18. A kill from Kazcor down the right line and an ace by Jessica Gysin cinched game one for the Trojans, 30-18.
USC scored first in game two, but senior Nji Nnamani kept it close with a rocket on the right side, 2-1. Richards pounded a kill on the left side, and Akinradewo and Kehoe collected a block to tie the game at 3. USC pulled out a 3-1 streak on kills by Kaczor, but a massive kill from Barboza later brought the Cardinal back within a point, 6-5. The Trojans followed with another 4-0 run with two kills by Kaczor to gap Stanford, 12-7. Following a timeout, Girard collected a kill in the middle and Nnamani pounded a kill from the right side to bring the score to 13-9. Kehoe snuck another quick tip over the net, 14-10, then a massive cross-court kill from Barboza kicked off a 2-1 streak for Stanford, 17-12. Waller collected a kill from the right side, but the Trojans continued hold a lead off of attacks, 22-16. A kill from Richards in the middle and a mishandled ball brought the score to 24-20. USC came out of a timeout to log a kill by Copenhagen, but Stanford answered with a kill from Girard in the middle, 25-21. Akinradewo notched two kills on the right side to keep Stanford within four, 28-24, but USC claimed a second game off of a kill by Katelyn Bishop and a wide attack, 30-24.
In game three, the Trojans jumped into a slight lead, 4-2, with two kills. Stanford tied the game at 4 on an attacking error, and later took its first lead of the game on a kill by Richards in the middle, 7-6. Trojan errors helped the Cardinal move ahead, 9-7, and force USC into a timeout. Stanford continued on a 5-1 run on kills by Richards and Barboza, 9-8. Girard later logged two kills on the right side, followed by a kill from Akinradewo, 13-11. Kaczor then registered a powerful kill for the Trojans, but Akinradewo put a quick kill down the middle to maintain a Cardinal lead, 15-12. Akinradewo continued to hound the Trojans, ending a long rally with a rocket down the middle, 16-13. Barboza followed with another cross-court attack to push USC into a timeout. The Trojans came out of timeout to notch a kill from Copenhagen, later pulling within two on a wide attack, 18-16. Waller answered with a cross-court kill, 20-17. The Trojans later pulled within a point on two kills and a block, 21-20, and tied the game on a kill by Carico. Akinradewo followed with two more kills to keep the Cardinal in the lead, 23-22. USC then put together a 3-0 run to take over the lead, 25-23, on kills from Copenhagen and Johansen. Kehoe came out of a timeout with a tip in the middle, then Barboza and Girard combined for a block to tie the game at 25. The Trojans and the Cardinal fought point for point, with Richards tying the game again at 27 with a kill. Kaczor registered a kill on the right side tie the game again at 28, then Akinradewo put Stanford near the win with a kill. USC bounced back on a kill by Copenhagen, but Akinradewo kept the Cardinal alive with a kill. USC's Carico and Johansen registered a kill each, then the Trojans claimed the match on an attacking error. 33-31.
Akinradewo collected 15 of Stanford's 48 kills for a .433 hitting percentage. Sophomore libero Jessica Fishburn led the Cardinal with 21 digs, while Kehoe added 13 digs and Richards collected eight to become the all-time leader with 1,466 career digs. Kehoe also tallied 42 assists against the Trojans.
Head coach John Dunning was honored for his 600th win tonight between games two and three of the match. Duning earned his 600th win on October 20 over Oregon. He has tallied a 166-29 record in six years at Stanford and a 603-131 record in 21 years of coaching.
Stanford returns to action tomorrow night, hosting No. 5 UCLA at 7:00 pm in Maples Pavilion. Tomorrow's Dig for the Cure match will provide fans an opportunity to make pledges per dig or flat donations to benefit the San Francisco chapter of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Look for volunteers wearing pink shirts between games two and three to make donations. Fans can also purchase pink ribbons worn by both teams for $10 each following the match.