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Women's Basketball

First Road Trip Finishes at Gonzaga

Stanford is 13-3 all-time against Gonzaga and 4-2 against the Bulldogs on the road

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THE GAME: Stanford concludes its first road trip of 2025-26 at Gonzaga on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. Greg Heister and Stephanie Hawk-Freeman have the call on ESPN+, while Tim Swartz will handle radio on GoStanford.com, the Stanford Athletics app and Learfield’s Varsity Network.

THE RUNDOWN: Stanford is 4-0 for the fourth consecutive season ... The Cardinal has had 17 individual double-digit scoring efforts across its four wins with nobody scoring more than 16 ... Stanford’s 17 double-digit scorers are tied for third nationally ... The Cardinal’s freshman class has accounted for 44.2 percent of the team’s scoring and its junior class 43.2 percent ... In available record since 2002-03, Hailee Swain is the first Stanford freshman to score in double figures in each of the season’s first four games ... Lara Somfai collected Stanford’s first ACC weekly honor since joining the league when she was named ACC Rookie of the Week on Monday ... She is one of three freshmen in the country averaging 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds ... The Cardinal is near the top of the ACC in returning production, welcoming back 54.2 percent of its scoring, 49.7 percent of its rebounding, and 57.4 percent of its assists ... Stanford has the fewest transfers on its roster among all 68 Power 4 programs (1) ... Chloe Clardy is one of 21 players in the country averaging 11.5 points, 3.25 assists and 2.75 steals, but is one of only two to do it coming off the bench ... Stanford won its first road game of the season on Friday at Washington State ... The Cardinal did not win its first road game last season until Jan. 16.

GONZAGA: Stanford is 13-3 all-time against Gonzaga and 4-2 against the Bulldogs on the road. Stanford and Gonzaga have played in nonconference in 13 of the 16 seasons since 2009-10, only missing 2014-15, 2017-18 and 2020-21. In last year’s meeting on Nov. 10, ten different players scored, Stanford hit 13 3-pointers, and the Cardinal was an 89-58 winner in the first game played on Tara VanDerveer Court. Gonzaga won the last meeting in Spokane on Dec. 3, 2023, 96-78.

BALANCED ATTACK »

  • Stanford’s offense hasn’t relied on just one person in the early going. The Cardinal has had 17 individual double-digit scoring efforts across its four wins with nobody scoring more than 16 points.
  • In its first three games, the Cardinal had at least five double-digit scorers in every one, including six against Santa Clara.
  • Stanford has four players averaging at least 11.0 points per game (Somfai - 12.8, Agara - 12.0, Swain - 11.8, Clardy - 11.5) and six averaging at least 7.0 (Lepolo - 7.8, Eschmeyer - 7.3).
  • The Cardinal’s 17 double-digit scorers this year are tied for third nationally in games against DI opponents. Oklahoma State and LSU lead the country with 23 such performances.
  • Stanford’s four players averaging at least 11.0 points per game this season are tied for 10th nationally behind Oklahoma State (6), LSU (6), Duquesne (5), North Texas (5), Iowa (5), Notre Dame (5), Mississippi State (5), Michigan State (5) and Virginia Tech (5).

AS GOOD AS ADVERTISED »

  • Stanford’s freshmen McDonald’s All-Americans have been as good as advertised to start the season. Lara Somfai (12.8 ppg), Hailee Swain (11.8 ppg) and Alexandra Eschmeyer (7.3 ppg) have accounted for 127 of their team’s 310 points (41.0 percent) and 64 of 172 rebounds (37.2 percent).
  • In the Nov. 6 win over Santa Clara, Somfai had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Eschmeyer went for 11 points, 12 boards and a game-high four blocks. In available records dating to 2002-03, it was the first time Stanford had two freshmen with double-doubles in the same game.
  • The only other Cardinal freshmen to match Eschmeyer’s line over that same span were Cameron Brink at Washington State on Jan. 27, 2021 (12 points, 14 rebounds, five blocks) and Kaylee Johnson against Washington on Feb. 2, 2015 (11 points, 17 rebounds, four blocks).
  • Stanford is one of two schools to have multiple freshmen with double-doubles in the same game this season along with Santa Clara’s Tyler Gildersleeve-Stiles (11 pts, 10 rebs) and Delainey Miller (10 pts, 10 rebs) against Wyoming on Nov. 14.
  • The Cardinal is the first Power 4 team to do it since Colorado’s Grace Oliver (16 pts, 14 rebs) and Erin Powell (11 pts, 11 rebs) against Houston on Feb. 15, 2025 and the first ACC team since Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron (13 pts, 12 rebs) and Olivia Miles (17 pts, 10 rebs) on Jan. 28, 2022 against Syracuse.
  • Swain is the only Stanford player to score in double figures in every game and, in available records dating back to 2002-03, is the first Cardinal freshman to score at least 10 in each of the season’s first four games. She is tied for the national lead in double-digit scoring efforts among freshmen (4).
  • Freshmen Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai have been in Stanford’s starting lineup alongside upperclassmen Nunu Agara, Talana Lepolo and Courtney Ogden.
  • It’s the Cardinal’s longest stretch of games starting a pair of freshmen since Haley Jones and Fran Belibi made their five consecutive starts together from Dec. 28, 2019 to Jan. 12, 2020.
  • When they started against UNC Greensboro on Nov. 3, it was the first time the Cardinal had started two freshmen in a season opener since November 17, 2000 at Saint Mary’s when Nicole Powell and Susan King were in the starting lineup.

ACC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK »

  • Lara Somfai collected Stanford’s first ACC weekly honor since joining the league when she was named ACC Rookie of the Week on Monday.
  • The Cardinal’s leading scorer and rebounder, Somfai averaged a double-double in Stanford’s three wins to open the season against UNC Greensboro (87-42), Santa Clara (79-58) and Cal Poly (90-55). The 6-foot-3 forward put up 14.3 points and 10.3 rebounds in 22.2 minutes per game.
  • She is one of three freshmen in the country averaging 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds along with Austin Peay’s Jade Rucker (13.0 pts, 9.0 rebs) and Ball State’s Zhen Verburgt (13.0 points, 9.0 rebs).
  • Somfai is tied for seventh nationally with two double-doubles and one of two major conference freshmen in the country with multiple (Bonnie Deas – Arkansas). Against Cal Poly, she became the first Stanford freshman with double-doubles in back-to-back games since Ashten Prechtel in 2019-20.
  • When she went for 14 points, 10 rebounds and three steals against Cal Poly on Nov. 9, Somfai became the first major conference freshman to do that since UConn’s Sarah Strong against Villanova on March 9, 2025 (20 pts, 16 rebs, 3 stls) and the first ACC freshman to do it since Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo against Virginia Tech on Feb. 29, 2024 (23 pts, 12 rebs, 3 stls).
  • The Cardinal has two freshmen averaging at least 11.0 points per game, tied for the national lead with seven other schools (Austin Peay, Arkansas, Cincinnati, Mississippi State, SIU Edwardsville, Cal State Fullerton, LSU).
  • Players 6-feet-5 and taller have made a combined 10 total three pointers this season and Stanford’s 6-foot-5 freshman Alexandra Eschmeyer has two of those (2-of-3). Kentucky’s 6-foot-5 Clara Strack has made 4-of-13, NC State’s 6-foot-6 Tilda Trygger has made 3-of-7 and North Carolina’s Blanca Thomas has made 1-of-1.

UPPERCLASSMEN LEAD THE WAY »

  • The Cardinal has three upperclassmen in its top six scorers alongside its freshmen in Nunu Agara (12.0 ppg), Chloe Clardy (11.5 ppg) and Talana Lepolo (7.8 ppg).
  • Agara narrowly missed a double-double in the win over Santa Clara with 13 points, nine rebounds and four assists and led Stanford with 16 points against Cal Poly.
  • Lepolo, who missed all but five games last season due to injury, led all scorers with 16 points against the Broncos on Nov. 6 and was 4-of-6 from behind the arc. Her 16 points were her most since scoring a career-high 20 at California on Dec. 29, 2023.
  • Chloe Clardy is one of 21 players in the country averaging 11.5 points, 3.25 assists and 2.75 steals, but is one of only two to do it coming off the bench (Olivia Hamlin - BYU).

GETTING BACK TO DEFENSE »

  • Stanford’s defense had gotten off to a good start this season, holding its four opponents to an average of 50.3 points on 32.0 percent shooting.
  • In the season opener against UNC Greensboro, the Cardinal limited the Spartans to just 42 points on 25.9 percent shooting (15-of-58), numbers better than any game last season.
  • The point total was the fewest allowed by the Cardinal since a 98-38 win over Morgan State on Dec. 31, 2023 and UNCG’s field goal percentage was the lowest for a Stanford opponent since UAlbany shot 25.0 percent (14-of-56) on Nov. 26, 2023.
  • Last season, Stanford was 261st nationally in field goal percentage defense (.421) and 286th in scoring defense (69.3). Prior to last season and in available NCAA records dating to 2001-02, the Cardinal had never finished outside the top 50 in field goal percentage defense and had been outside the top 100 in scoring defense just twice.
  • Those 23 seasons (2001-02 through 2023-24) included 12 years of a top-10 field goal percentage defense and two top-10 scoring defenses.

ROAD WIN  »

  • Stanford’s win at Washington State on Friday was just its third on the road since its move to the ACC.
  • The Cardinal went 14-4 at home last season, including 14-1 against unranked opponents.
  • But Stanford only managed two road wins at Wake Forest on Jan. 16 and at Virginia Tech on Feb. 20.
  • Stanford was 2-9 in true road games. The Cardinal’s only other sub-.500 road record over the previous 37 seasons was in 2000-01 (6-8).
  • In home games in 2024-25, Stanford scored 79.4 points per game on 48.5 percent shooting, including 39.5 perfect from deep. In its 13 road and neutral games away from Maples, the Cardinal averaged 63.5 points on 39.1 percent shooting and 31.0 percent on 3-pointers.

RETURNING PRODUCTION »

  • Stanford is near the top of the ACC in returning production, welcoming back 54.2 percent of its scoring (1,221 of 2,255 points), 49.7 percent of its rebounding (583 of 1,172 rebounds), 57.4 percent of its assists (251 of 437 assists) and 56.9 percent of its minutes played (3,585 of 6,300 minutes) from a season ago.
  • The Cardinal is third in the ACC in returning points (Duke - 67.7%, Virginia 61.6%, Virginia Tech 54.7%), second in returning rebounds (Duke - 64.1%), third in returning assists (Virginia - 70.7%, Virginia Tech - 68.5%, Duke - 63.0%), and third in returning minutes (Duke - 68.1%, Virginia Tech - 57.6%).

CARDINAL CONTINUITY »

  • The Cardinal only has one transfer on its roster in junior Mary Ashley Stevenson, who is in her second year on The Farm after playing one season at Purdue.
  • Stanford has the fewest transfers on its roster among all 68 Power 4 programs. NC State, Washington and Oklahoma each have two.
  • Among Power 4 schools, Stanford and Washington tied for the least amount of portal movement this offseason (total number of transfers in + transfers out). The Cardinal had two outgoing transfers in senior Tess Heal (Kansas State) and graduate student Jzaniya Harriel (SMU). The Huskies, which had zero outgoing transfers, welcomed two incoming transfers in Avery Howell (USC) and Yulia Grabovskaia (Michigan).

FIRST CLASS »

  • In addition to Stanford’s returning core, the team added the nation’s No. 3 recruiting class according to es­pnW HoopGurlz.
  • Kate Paye’s first signing class as head coach included three five-star talents (Hailee Swain, Lara Somfai, Alexandra Eschmeyer) and two four-stars (Nora Ezike, Carly Amborn) according to espnW HoopGurlz, and four ranked in that publication’s top 100.
Player HoopGurlz Rank Stars Ht./Pos.
Hailee Swain 8 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5-11 • G
Lara Somfai 12 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6-4 • F
Alexandra Eschmeyer 21 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6-5 • F
Nora Ezike 85 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6-2 • F
Carly Amborn -- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 6-2 • G/F
  • Stanford’s three five-star signees tied for the national lead with Tennessee and LSU and the program’s most since it had four in the Class of 2019 (Haley Jones, Ashten Prechtel, Fran Belibi, Hannah Jump.
  • Of the 24 women selected to be McDonald’s All Americans, Stanford (Eschmeyer, Somfai, Swain) and Ten­nessee had the most players suiting up next fall with three commits each. Stanford’s three McDonald’s All Americans were almost as many as the rest of the ACC combined (4).

PRESEASON ACC PROGNOSTICATIONS »

  • The Cardinal was picked to finish sixth in the ACC in a vote of the league’s 18 head coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel.
  • Stanford totaled 1,041 points from 70 voters to finish sixth in the predicted order of finish. Duke topped the poll with 1,525 points and 40 first-place votes, NC State was second with 1,487 points and 25 first-place votes, North Carolina was third with 1,374 points and one first-place vote, Louisville was fourth with 1,276 points and two first-place votes, and Notre Dame was fifth with 1,255 points and the final two first-place votes.
  • An All-ACC second team selection last season, Nunu Agara was voted to the 10-person Preseason All-ACC Team. She was Stanford’s leading scorer (15.8 ppg) and rebounder (7.6 rpg) a season ago and is the ACC’s third-leading returning scorer (Hannah Hidalgo – Notre Dame; Kymora Johnson - Virginia) and its second-lead­ing returning rebounder (Jessica Peterson - Miami).
  • Hailee Swain and Lara Somfai landed on the six-person Preseason All-Freshman Team and Stanford was the only school with multiple players on the list. Both five-star talents, Swain was rated as the No. 8 player in the country in the Class of 2025 according to ESPN HoopGurlz and Somfai was ranked 12th. Among numerous prep honors, the pair were McDonald’s All-Americans, Jordan Brand Classic All-Americans and appeared at the Nike Hoop Summit – Swain for USA Basketball and Somfai on the World Roster.

WATCH LISTS »

  • Nunu Agara is one of 50 players under consideration for the 2026 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year and one of 20 on the watch list for the 2026 Katrina McClain Award, which recognizes the top power forward in women’s college basketball.
  • She scored in double figures in 21 games last season, had six 20-point efforts and tied for eighth in the ACC with nine double-doubles.
  • Agara increased her scoring average by 10.4 points and her rebounding average by 4.7 boards over her freshman year and was one of seven major conference underclassmen to average 15.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.
  • She had 29 points and 13 rebounds in an overtime loss at No. 5 LSU on Dec. 5 and shot 75.0 percent from the floor (12-of-16), becoming the fifth DI player since 2002-03 to have 29 points and 13 rebounds in a true road game against an AP top five opponent and the only one to do it on better than 60.0 percent shooting.
  • Kennedy Umeh is on the watch list for the 2026 Lisa Leslie Award, which recognizes the top center in women’s college basketball.
  • Umeh appeared in 21 games as a freshman last season, averaging 3.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. She collected her first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in just 11 minutes against Morgan State on Nov. 22, becoming just the seventh power conference player with a double-double in 11 minutes or less since 2002-03.
  • Stanford has had two take home the Naismith Player of the Year honors, Jennifer Azzi in 1990 and Kate Starbird in 1997. Two seasons ago, Cameron Brink was the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year.
  • Stanford has had a pair of Naismith Starting 5 winners previously. In 2024, Kiki Iriafen won the Katrina McClain Award and Cameron Brink won the Lisa Leslie Award (center).
  • Lara Somfai and Hailee Swain are both on the preseason watch list for the USBWA Tamika Catchings Award, which recognizes the national freshman player of the year.

SUPERB STAFF »

  • Stanford boasts a roster of coaches that features four WNBA veterans, more than any other program in the country, in Kate Paye, Katy Steding, Erica McCall and Jeanette Pohlen. All are Stanford graduates.
  • Paye played 79 games for Minnesota and Seattle from 2000-02, Steding 55 games for Sacramento and Seattle in 2000 and 2001, Pohlen 148 games for Indiana from 2011-2017, and McCall 122 games for Indiana, Atlanta, Minnesota and Washington from 2017-21.

SAMUELSON RETURNS TO STANFORD »

  • Karlie Samuelson, a 2017 honorable mention All-American who led the Cardinal to two Final Fours, has returned to her alma mater as an intern for the 2025-26 season.
  • Back with the program while she rehabs from a left foot injury sustained in June, Samuelson has played for six franchises across seven WNBA seasons since her graduation from Stanford with a degree in human biology in in 2017. Over 121 career games, the 6-0 guard has averaged 5.3 points and 2.0 rebounds while shooting 41.1 percent from the field and 39.2 from deep.
  • Samuelson is the fifth Stanford alumna and WNBA veteran on staff this season, joining four Cardinal coaches in Kate Paye, Katy Steding, Erica McCall and Jeanette Pohlen.
  • Samuelson averaged career highs in points (12.4), rebounds (3.4) and assists (2.7) and personal bests in field goal percentage (.482) and 3-point field goal percentage (.485) in leading the Cardinal to the 2017 Final Four as a senior. She finished second in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage, a mark good for second in school single-season history and fifth in Pac-12 history.
  • Her 96 made 3-pointers in 2016-17 are tied with Jeanette Pohlen for second in Stanford history, tied for eighth in Pac-12 history, and her 249 career 3-pointers are fifth in the school record books. A career 44.3 percent 3-point shooter, Samuelson is second at Stanford to Jennifer Azzi, fifth in Pac-12 history and 21st in NCAA history. She ended her playing time at Stanford with the best career 3-point percentage for any Pac-12 player since 1990.

AP TOP 25 »

  • Stanford was outside the preseason AP Top 25 for the second consecutive year, the first time that’s happened since 1985-86 and 1986-87.
  • The Cardinal appeared on three ballots in the latest rankings - Alex Simon (SF Gate), Kelly Gramlich (ACC Network), Mitchell Northam (WUNC).
  • Stanford has not been ranked since Nov. 11, 2024, a stretch of 21 consecutive polls that is the program’s longest stretch since it made its debut in the rankings on Nov. 23, 1987.
  • When Stanford was ranked last season on Nov. 11, Kate Paye became the 16th person to both play on and be a head coach for an AP-ranked team at the same school (H/T Mel Greenberg).
  • The other 15, in alphabetical order: Adia Barnes (Arizona), Amanda Butler (Florida), Pokey Chatman (LSU), Cynthia Cooper-Dyke (USC), Kellie Harper (Tennessee), Michelle Clark-Heard (Western Kentucky), Niele Ivey (Notre Dame), Carolyn Kieger (Marquette), Linda Lappe (Colorado), Wendy Larry (Old Dominion), Cheryl Miller (USC), Carol Ross (Ole Miss), Bev Smith (Oregon), Holly Warlick (Tennessee) and Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota).
  • The Cardinal is the second-most ranked team of all-time and has appeared in 646 of 887 all-time AP polls over 50 seasons (Tennessee - 796).

SEASON OF CHANGE »

  • After making 36 consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 1988-2024, Stanford was not an at-large selection to the field in 2024-25 and appeared in the WBIT for the first time.
  • Stanford was 49th in the NET rankings ahead of Selection Sunday, the fourth-highest rated program to not make the NCAA Tournament (No. 39 Minnesota, No. 46 Virginia Tech; No. 48 UNLV).
  • The Cardinal was 50th in the final NET rankings after the completion of the NCAA Tournament.
  • With a 16-15 overall record, Stanford posted a winning record for the 38th consecutive season, the fifth-longest active streak in the country.
  • The Cardinal’s 16 wins were its fewest since 1986-87 (14) and its 8-10 conference mark was its first sub-.500 league record since the same year (8-10).
  • Stanford played in a different league for the first time since Tara VanDerveer’s first Cardinal squad played in the Pac-West in 1985-86.

ALUMNI SUPPORT PROGRAM AHEAD OF SEASON »

  • Stanford women’s basketball received a generous gift from longtime program supporters Celia Oakley, MS ‘85, PhD ‘91, and her husband, Craig Barratt, MS ‘87, PhD ‘92, the two endowing an assistant coaching position to bolster the program’s ability to recruit, develop, and retain top coaching talent.
  • Erica McCall is the inaugural holder of the Celia Oakley and Craig Barratt Women’s Basketball Assistant Coachship.
  • Oakley and Barratt are among the program’s most dedicated supporters. Oakley earned her undergraduate degree at Cal and her master’s and PhD in engineering at Stanford. She’s a fan of both institutions, and especially Cardinal basketball. A lifelong sports fan and athlete, she served on the Stanford Athletics Board until 2021 and currently serves on the Stanford Women’s Basketball Board of Advisors.
  • Oakley spent the last decade developing electric personal aerial vehicles at Pivotal Aero, most recently as the Chief Information Officer. She helped guide the company through product development to human flight. Prior to joining Pivotal, Oakley was a member of the Stanford Racing Team, which created Stanley, the world’s first successful self-driving car, which won the DARPA Grand Challenge.
  • Barratt also earned his master’s and PhD in engineering at Stanford and serves as a director at several technology companies, in addition to being an advisor of the Stanford Center for Digital Health.
  • Five of Stanford’s six coaching positions are endowed.

HOME OF CHAMPIONS »

  • Stanford has won at least one NCAA team title in each of the past 49 years (dating back to the 1976-77 campaign), the longest streak in NCAA history.
  • Stanford leads the NCAA with 137 team titles, including two national team championships during the 2024-25 campaign - women’s water polo and women’s rowing, increasing its overall total to 173.
  • Stanford is one of six programs with at least one national championship in football, baseball, and men’s basketball, and the only school with at least one in football, baseball, men’s and women’s basketball.
  • From 1995-2019, Stanford won 25 straight Division I Learfield Sports Directors’ Cups. The Cardinal enters the 2025-26 year with 26 of the 31 total Directors’ Cups, most recently capturing the award during the 2022-23 season.