April 16, 2003
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Ahead for the Cardinal...
Third-ranked Stanford (16-2, 8-1 MPSF) closes out the 2003 regular season this Friday with a home match against tenth-ranked San Jose State at 7 p.m. The four Cardinal seniors, Jackie Frank, Julie Gardner, Nicole Huszcz and Brenda Villa, will be honored before the match as Stanford looks to secure a top seed for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Tournament. The Spartans are led by sophomore Christine Welsh, who has tallied 35 goals this season. San Jose State holds a 15-13 record overall and a 3-6 mark in MPSF play.
Previously on The Farm...
The Cardinal held off No. 5 California last week as Stanford earned the Big Splash title on Saturday. The Golden Bears could not hold off an 8-2 scoring barrage by the Cardinal as Villa tabbed three goals to lead both teams in scoring. Stanford returned to The Farm on Sunday to host No. 7 Hawai'i. The Cardinal posted a 9-3 victory as Hannah Luber and Kelty Luber scored two goals apiece to surpass the Rainbow Wahine.
MPSF Honors...
Senior goalie Frank has been tabbed the MPSF Mikasa Player of the Week twice this season. She was first honored after helping the Cardinal to wins over UCLA and UCSB. Frank collected 23 saves in the two games and held the Bruins to three goals and limited the Gauchos to two scores. She picked up her second accolade at the end of March after helping the Cardinal drop No. 3 USC and Pacific.
Captains' Corner...
Seniors Julie Gardner and Nicole Huszcz are leading the Cardinal this year as co-captains. In their final campaign on The Farm, both will look to make their last season their best season. The tandem has combined for 26 of the team's 162 goals as the Cardinal earned its first 16 wins. Gardner has posted four multi-goal games, including a two-goal effort against No. 3 USC on March 29th. Huszcz netted a season-high two goals against UC Santa Cruz in the opening game of the UCSB Invite on March 8th.
National Team File...
Frank and Villa, Stanford's other two players in their final collegiate campaign, spent their off-season with the National Team and helped the U.S. to a silver medal at the 2002 FINA Cup in Perth Australia this past December. Frank led all keepers in goals allowed average and saves while Villa led the tournament in scoring with nine goals. The duo matched up against their U.S. teammates last Saturday when Stanford fell to the National Team 7-3 at the Avery Aquatic Center.
Statistical File...
Every offensive member of the Stanford squad has notched at least one goal this season. The Cardinal has out-scored opponents by an average of 5.7 goals per game. Stanford has limited opponents to only 64 goals this season (3.56 gpg) with the tough defense by both the field players and the goalkeepers. Frank and freshman Amanda Matuk have combined for 9.3 saves per game in the net. On the offensive side, Villa leads the team with 34 goals this season while H. Luber and Gardner follow with 18 each, Wendy Watkins has netted 16, Lauren Faust trails with 15, and Laurel Champion has netted 12 goals.