[Fwd: #6 Stanford vs. #13 Santa Clara, WVB results]

OK - the official results (and many comments from me) are below -
just in case anyone is trying to avoid them.

I have to hand it to Santa Clara (and I should have mentioned it
in my report of the LMU match Saturday - but I managed to forget
what I was going to say.  The fans have really cleaned up their
act.  These were the first two matches I've attended at Santa
Clara in which the fans adhered to the announcement that the
school and the NCAA require positive sportsmanship from the
crowd.  I sat in the SCU student section on Saturday, and there
were a few mutterings - I think all of them were complaints
about the refereeing (and one fellow admitted to me that he
knew that the line judge was right - he was just trying to buy
a call, but when I suggested that he was more likely to cause
the line judge to rule against the Broncos on the next close
call, he agreed, and did not do it again).  So, Santa Clara,
congratulations on cleaning up your act!  I hope you keep it up
(and I will be back to find out!).

Tonight, though, I think there were more Stanford fans than
Santa Clara fans in the stands - we certainly were louder
the the Bronco fans!

We're almost there.  A few more lines to the results.

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OK - that should do it.

Aimee Dombroski wrote:
> 
> No. 6 Cardinal Defeat No. 13 Santa Clara 3-1
> 
> Ogonna Nnamani tallies a match-high 22 kills in the win.
>
> Nov. 25, 2003
> 
> Santa Clara, Calif. - Junior outside hitter Ogonna Nnamani had
> a match-high 22 kills as the sixth-ranked Stanford women's
> volleyball team defeated No. 13 Santa Clara tonight, 3-1.  Game
> scores were 24-30, 30-25, 30-22, 30-22.

[Side-out scores were 9-14, 11-7, 12-4, 13-6]

> The Cardinal improve to 22-6 overall while the Broncos fall to
> 20-10.
> 
> Santa Clara rattled off four consecutive points to open game one
> and pushed the lead to 11-4 to force the first Cardinal timeout.
> With the Broncos leading 15-7, Stanford strung together three points
> to close within five at 10-15 and got to within three at 13-16 as
> Santa Clara called a timeout.  But the Broncos opened up the lead
> again taking a 20-14 advantage as the Cardinal called their final
> timeout of the game. Stanford fought back to close the gap to 21-24
> but could get no closer as Santa Clara pulled away to win game one
> 30-24.

It looked like the Cardinal were sleepwalking through the first half
of game one.  Santa Clara is far too good a team for Stanford to
get away with that.  The Bronco lead got to 13-4 after the Broncos
sided out on a Toni Muratore kill through the block for 8-4, then
Muratore came through the middle for another kill, Cassie Perret hit
one off the block and out of bounds, and a Stanford hitting error
made it 11-4.  After the Stanford time-out, Stanford was called for
a lift on a botched play, and another hitting error made it 13-4.
After that, the Cardinal started getting it together, but it was
too little, too late.  Santa Clara already had nine of their fourteen
(side-out scoring) points, and the other five all came one at a time.
But the Cardinal could not put up any runs of their own, and the
three point deficits at 13-16 [which turned into 13-18 and 14-20], 
21-24, and 22-25 were as close as they would come.

> Stanford came out firing in game two, building a 9-4 lead after
> a block by Jennifer Harvey and Katie Goldhahn.  Santa Clara closed
> the gap to 14-16 before the Cardinal began to pull away again and
> opened a 21-16 lead on a Kristin Richards kill.  Stanford reached
> game point on another Richards' kill at 29-24, and a Broncos service
> error closed out the game at 30-25.

The 9-4 lead could have been 10-4 - I would have called a lift on
the set Muratore killed for the side-out, but the refs had a better
view - and Kelli Sousa does have very quick hands, so the refs were
probably right.  Nevertheless, Stanford pushed the lead to 11-5, and
were up 13-7.  The Broncos got one back for 13-9, but Stanford was
up 16-11 before Becky Biniek got a kill on an interesting offensive
play - I think she went out to the right like a slide play, except
that the right side hitter came in first - maybe you could call it
a right side X play?.  That made it 12-16, and two straight aces
for Muratore (the second one just rolling over the net) closed the gap
to two points.  A service error gave the ball back to the Cardinal,
and started a string of sides-out which lasted until Katie Goldhahn
got an ace of her own for a 20-16 lead.  Kristin Richards got a kill
from the back row when the ball hit the net and rolled over - Santa
Clara then called time-out.  Jenn Hucke and Sara Dukes got kills to
make it 23-16, but Becky Potter hit a quick set off the block and
out of bounds for the side-out, and the Broncos came back with two
more points on a Potter kill (nearly an ace for Kim McGiven, but the
serve reception was an overpass that Potter cleaned up) and a Potter
block, so Stanford called time-out.  A Santa Clara hitting error
gave Stanford the ball at 24-19, but Potter got another kill on
a slide, and then went back to serve - Muratore and Biniek got a block
to make it 24-21.  A couple of sides-out on kills by Richards and
Muratore made it 25-22, and then it appeared that Stanford got a block
from Harvey and Hucke - but there was some disagreement as to whether
the ball was down, and the referee eventually awarded the Broncos
a replay.  Harvey ran a slide, and rolled the ball deep down the line
for the side-out.  Harvey then got a block, and Richards got a kill
to make it 28-22, but a service error and a hitting error made it
28-24.  A Richards kill, a Biniek kill, and a service error finished
the game.

> Game three was a back and forth battle with the Cardinal taking
> a slim 15-12 at the media timeout after a Kristin Richards kill.
> Stanford continued to lead taking a 24-20 advantage on Sara Dukes'
> kill.  The Broncos took their final timeout trailing 22-28 and
> Stanford reached game point on a Santa Clara hitting error.
> Ogonna Nnamani closed out the game with a kill at 30-22 to give
> the Cardinal a 2-1 lead in the match.

Scoring (Stanford served first):
  ,0-1 0-2 ,,,,,,,,,5-6 7-6 ,7-7 7-8 ,8-8.
  9-8 ,,10-9 11-9 ,11-10 11-11 ,,,13-12 15-12 ,15-13 15-14
    ,16-14 18-14 ,,,,20-16.
  ,,,,,,,,,,25-21 26-21 ,,27-22.
  30-22 [a Richards kill for the side-out at 27-22, then an ace for
    Richards, a hitting error, and an Nnamani kill for the game].

> Game four remained close between the two teams as Stanford took
> a 15-12 lead into the media timeout after a service ace by Sara
> Dukes.  The Cardinal scored the next three points to gain an 18-12
> advantage on a kill by Jennifer Harvey.  Stanford led 26-16 after
> a kill by Ogonna Nnamani and reached game point at 29-19 on a kill
> by Jennifer Hucke. The Broncos held off four game points before
> falling 30-22.

Scoring (Santa Clara served first):
  ,,,2-1 3-1 ,,4-2 6-2 ,,7-3 8-3 ,8-4 8-5 ,,,,10-7.
  10-8 ,,,,12-10 12-11 ,,,14-12 21-12 [No misprint - Dukes got a kill
    for the side-out at 14-12, then Dukes' serve hit the back line
    to bring on the media time-out.  A block by Hucke and Harvey,
    a Santa Clara error, and a Harvey kill off a quick set made it
    18-12, and the Broncos called time-out.  It didn't help:  three
    Bronco errors made it 21-12, before a Muratore kill sided-out]
    ,,, [and it was 22-14 when something happened.  As best I can
    reconstruct it, a Katie Goldhahn dig (maybe a set, but I don't
    think so) went up towards the net.  Kristin Richards jumped, but
    I don't think she touched it.  However, the ball came down between
    two Bronco blockers and the net, for a Stanford side-out]
    ,23-14 24-14 ,24-15.
  ,,,,26-17 26-18 ,27-28 28-18 ,,,29-20 29-22 [after Jenn Hucke's
    tip gave the Cardinal game point, a Muratore kill, a hitting
    error, and a block] ,30-22 [Kristin Richards finally ended it
    with a kill].

> Freshman Kristin Richards added 19 kills and 14 digs to the effort
> while Sara Dukes had seven kills and seven blocks on the night.
> Jennifer Hucke notched seven kills, two service aces and 11 digs
> while libero Leahi Hall tallied 12 digs.
> 
> Becky Potter had 20 kills for Santa Clara while Toni Muratore
> added 17 on the night.

Sousa and Potter connected with some very quick quick sets - I don't
think the ball went six inches on a couple of them.

> Stanford will close out the 2003 regular season with
> a non-conference match against No. 20 Notre Dame on Saturday,
> November 29, at 7 p.m. in Maples Pavilion.

And then I hope that the NCAA does not give Santa Clara the same
shaft they did last year - there was no call to put the Broncos
up against Cal in the first round, given the first round matchups
back east.

That's it from here.

Take care.

Mark

-- Go, Cardinal!