Post by flatlander on Dec 13, 2006 9:44:06 GMT -5
Final Four Preview: Tourney vet Stanford won't be awed by atmosphere
BY MITCH SHERMAN
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Few programs in any sport can match the success and consistency of Stanford women's volleyball.
Stanford middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo has a .439 hitting percentage, which ranks second nationally behind Nana Meriwether of UCLA.
With 16 trips to the national semifinals in 26 years and six national titles, the Cardinal feel as comfortable as any team - even host Nebraska - at Qwest Center Omaha this week.
Looking for Stanford's secret? There isn't one, according to coach John Dunning, although it doesn't hurt to field a team loaded with former prep All-Americans and USA volleyball products.
"I wouldn't say there's a formula except we're lucky in that we have a lot of really talented players," said Dunning, who picked up in 2001 right where longtime coach Don Shaw left off two years earlier. "A good thing about this team is that as the year's gone on, they've played better and better and better."
The road to Omaha culminated last week with a 30-28, 34-32, 31-33, 30-24, regional road win over Big 12 power Texas.
Key player
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
• Foluke Akinradewo: Pac-10 freshman of the year in 2005 improved across the board this fall. Hits at a scorching .439 clip for the season with 1.42 blocks per game. Has tri-citizenship in United States, Canada and Nigeria.
Stanford, 29-3 and the No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA tournament, won the loaded Pac-10 Conference by sweeping the season series against UCLA and splitting with USC and Washington.
"We've had a wonderful year," Dunning said. "We played a lot of tough matches. The Pac-10 is a very difficult conference. We feel very fortunate that we won some key matches to turn our season for the better."
Scouting the Cardinal:
With two starting outside hitters standing 6-foot and another at 5-9, Stanford is not big. But the Cardinal players are quick and technically sound behind Bryn Kehoe's veteran direction. "They've got two great outside hitters in Cynthia Barboza and Kristin Richards and a tremendously strong middle in Foluke Akinradewo," said UCLA coach Andy Banachowski, who lost twice to Stanford this season. "The rest of the team really has matured. And their setter, Bryn Kehoe, just does a tremendous job of getting her teammates to compete." Franci Girard teams with Akinradewo to form an impressive blocking tandem. Richards, a four-time all-conference pick, provides leadership.
By the Numbers:
• .439: Hitting percentage for middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo. The sophomore ranks second nationally behind UCLA's Nana Meriwether.
• 16: Total NCAA semifinal appearances by Stanford since 1976. The Cardinal have won six national championships, most recently in 2004.
• 13.2: Assists per game for setter Bryn Kehoe, which leads Stanford and ranks 22nd in the nation. As a team, the Cardinal ranks No. 14 in hitting percentage.
Five things to know about Stanford:
• 1. TRADITION RICH: Stanford has experienced more NCAA-tournament success than any team. The Cardinal are 81-20 (.802) in the postseason, ahead of Nebraska's second-place winning percentage of .756 (68-22). Stanford has won six titles (1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001 and 2004) and qualified 16 times for the national semifinals. Along with Penn State and UC-Santa Barbara, Stanford has appeared in all 26 NCAA tournaments.
• 2. GOING FOR FIVE: Stanford coach John Dunning has won four NCAA crowns, including two at Stanford. He coached 16 seasons at Pacific, winning titles in his first two years, 1985 and 1986 - when the Tigers beat Nebraska in the title match - before moving to Palo Alto in 2001. Dunning finished on top in his first year there, too, and has advanced to the semifinals for the fourth time in six years on the Farm.
• 3. HEIR APPARENT: Sophomore outside hitter Cynthia Barboza is potentially the latest in a long line of Stanford greats that includes American volleyball royalty Bev Oden, Kim Oden, Kerri Walsh and Logan Tom. Barboza ranked as the nation's top recruit two years ago out of Long Beach, Calif. Her freshman season was cut short by a knee injury, but Barboza has returned to post even better numbers this year. Her 4.28 kills per game lead the Cardinal.
• 4. INJURY BUG: Stanford has responded with a statement season after its stunning, second-round exit from the tournament a year ago. Santa Clara beat Stanford in four games to deny it a regional berth for just the second time in 25 years. What happened? Injuries decimated Dunning's lineup. In addition to Barboza's knee injury, setter Bryn Kehoe suffered a broken right hand while practicing in late October. She returned for the tournament, but Stanford was out of sync. Kehoe has returned this year for her third season as a starter to earn All Pac-10 honors. Her season-high 67 assists powered Stanford past Missouri in five games to avoid another second-round disaster this month.
• 5. EXTENDED TRIP: The Cardinal were the first of the four remaining teams to arrive in Omaha, flying straight from Austin, Texas, after beating host Texas Saturday in a regional final. Stanford coaches opted to spend the whole week here, with the Cardinal players breaking from practice to study and take final exams in conference rooms at the Embassy Suites Hotel in the Old Market. "We had some difficult decisions to make," Dunning said, "because you're not sure what kind of flights you're going to get out of Austin and back to Omaha. We're busy. We're tired, but we're studying and we're recovering." It's a long trip, the coach said, but it sure beats spending this week at home.
BY MITCH SHERMAN
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Few programs in any sport can match the success and consistency of Stanford women's volleyball.
Stanford middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo has a .439 hitting percentage, which ranks second nationally behind Nana Meriwether of UCLA.
With 16 trips to the national semifinals in 26 years and six national titles, the Cardinal feel as comfortable as any team - even host Nebraska - at Qwest Center Omaha this week.
Looking for Stanford's secret? There isn't one, according to coach John Dunning, although it doesn't hurt to field a team loaded with former prep All-Americans and USA volleyball products.
"I wouldn't say there's a formula except we're lucky in that we have a lot of really talented players," said Dunning, who picked up in 2001 right where longtime coach Don Shaw left off two years earlier. "A good thing about this team is that as the year's gone on, they've played better and better and better."
The road to Omaha culminated last week with a 30-28, 34-32, 31-33, 30-24, regional road win over Big 12 power Texas.
Key player
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
• Foluke Akinradewo: Pac-10 freshman of the year in 2005 improved across the board this fall. Hits at a scorching .439 clip for the season with 1.42 blocks per game. Has tri-citizenship in United States, Canada and Nigeria.
Stanford, 29-3 and the No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA tournament, won the loaded Pac-10 Conference by sweeping the season series against UCLA and splitting with USC and Washington.
"We've had a wonderful year," Dunning said. "We played a lot of tough matches. The Pac-10 is a very difficult conference. We feel very fortunate that we won some key matches to turn our season for the better."
Scouting the Cardinal:
With two starting outside hitters standing 6-foot and another at 5-9, Stanford is not big. But the Cardinal players are quick and technically sound behind Bryn Kehoe's veteran direction. "They've got two great outside hitters in Cynthia Barboza and Kristin Richards and a tremendously strong middle in Foluke Akinradewo," said UCLA coach Andy Banachowski, who lost twice to Stanford this season. "The rest of the team really has matured. And their setter, Bryn Kehoe, just does a tremendous job of getting her teammates to compete." Franci Girard teams with Akinradewo to form an impressive blocking tandem. Richards, a four-time all-conference pick, provides leadership.
By the Numbers:
• .439: Hitting percentage for middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo. The sophomore ranks second nationally behind UCLA's Nana Meriwether.
• 16: Total NCAA semifinal appearances by Stanford since 1976. The Cardinal have won six national championships, most recently in 2004.
• 13.2: Assists per game for setter Bryn Kehoe, which leads Stanford and ranks 22nd in the nation. As a team, the Cardinal ranks No. 14 in hitting percentage.
Five things to know about Stanford:
• 1. TRADITION RICH: Stanford has experienced more NCAA-tournament success than any team. The Cardinal are 81-20 (.802) in the postseason, ahead of Nebraska's second-place winning percentage of .756 (68-22). Stanford has won six titles (1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001 and 2004) and qualified 16 times for the national semifinals. Along with Penn State and UC-Santa Barbara, Stanford has appeared in all 26 NCAA tournaments.
• 2. GOING FOR FIVE: Stanford coach John Dunning has won four NCAA crowns, including two at Stanford. He coached 16 seasons at Pacific, winning titles in his first two years, 1985 and 1986 - when the Tigers beat Nebraska in the title match - before moving to Palo Alto in 2001. Dunning finished on top in his first year there, too, and has advanced to the semifinals for the fourth time in six years on the Farm.
• 3. HEIR APPARENT: Sophomore outside hitter Cynthia Barboza is potentially the latest in a long line of Stanford greats that includes American volleyball royalty Bev Oden, Kim Oden, Kerri Walsh and Logan Tom. Barboza ranked as the nation's top recruit two years ago out of Long Beach, Calif. Her freshman season was cut short by a knee injury, but Barboza has returned to post even better numbers this year. Her 4.28 kills per game lead the Cardinal.
• 4. INJURY BUG: Stanford has responded with a statement season after its stunning, second-round exit from the tournament a year ago. Santa Clara beat Stanford in four games to deny it a regional berth for just the second time in 25 years. What happened? Injuries decimated Dunning's lineup. In addition to Barboza's knee injury, setter Bryn Kehoe suffered a broken right hand while practicing in late October. She returned for the tournament, but Stanford was out of sync. Kehoe has returned this year for her third season as a starter to earn All Pac-10 honors. Her season-high 67 assists powered Stanford past Missouri in five games to avoid another second-round disaster this month.
• 5. EXTENDED TRIP: The Cardinal were the first of the four remaining teams to arrive in Omaha, flying straight from Austin, Texas, after beating host Texas Saturday in a regional final. Stanford coaches opted to spend the whole week here, with the Cardinal players breaking from practice to study and take final exams in conference rooms at the Embassy Suites Hotel in the Old Market. "We had some difficult decisions to make," Dunning said, "because you're not sure what kind of flights you're going to get out of Austin and back to Omaha. We're busy. We're tired, but we're studying and we're recovering." It's a long trip, the coach said, but it sure beats spending this week at home.