Stanford Dismantles WSU
The Washington State volleyball team was missing Missy Blackshire, and without her it wasn’t much of a match against Stanford.
The No. 7 Cardinal limited the Cougars to 16 points in three games as it continued its volleyball domination over the Cougars, winning 15-3, 15-9, 15-4 in front of 1,143 at Beasley Coliseum on Friday night. Stanford (5-1, 2-0 Pac-10) has won 27 of 28 meetings with the Cougars (5-3, 0-1).
“It’s kind of a bummer to start (the Pac-10) with them,” said WSU coach Cindy Fredrick. “But then you look at it on the other hand and you say, `Well good, they are done … until we go down there.”’
For Blackshire, the match with Stanford was over before it started. The sophomore outside hitter from Ferris was suspended Friday morning for a violation of team rules. Without Blackshire, who is second on the team in kills with 3.93 per game, the Cougars could not produce the outside power and kills necessary to challenge the Pac-10’s top team.
In addition, WSU kill leader Joy Sperry had an uncharacteristically bad match with just seven kills.
Adrian Hankoff tried to pick up the slack. The freshman, who entered the game with no kills in three games, led the Cougars with 12 against the Cardinal. But she was the only Cougars hitter in double figures.
Stanford, on the other hand, had three players with double-figure kill totals, led by freshman Logan Tom with 16.
“They have so many people who can attack,” said Fredrick. “They have Logan Tom, who just got done playing international matches with the national team and she is a great player. She doesn’t flinch on anything. Then you have Kerri Walsh, and she just gets things done, always has.”
After being bombed in the first game, the Cougars put up a little resistance in the second game. LaToya Harris came off the bench and provided a spark for the Cougars with four kills and four digs.
“In the second game, putting LaToya in really gave the kids a lift,” said Fredrick. “We weren’t sure whether she was going to be able to play. She went down in practice and somebody landed on her shoulder. The X-rays came back negative, and she was feeling fine so she said she was ready to go.”
After playing the Cardinal close in the second game, the Cougars were obviously not ready to go in the third. Stanford stormed out to a big lead and then was able to coast to the easy victory.
“It was like that all night,” said Fredrick. “We were letting them get up 6-1, 6-0, and against a team like Stanford, you just can’t do that.”
Not if you are planning to win.
The Cougars will take on Cal today at 7 p.m. in Beasley Coliseum. Blackshire will be reinstated for the game.
Gonzaga swept Alabama-Birmingham 15-4, 15-5, 15-6 and the University of Nevada defeated Ohio University 15-6, 15-2, 12-15, 15-12 in first-day matches at Spikeoff Spokane at Martin Centre.
Gonzaga had its best offensive hitting night of the season. The Zags hit a scorching .607 in the third game, connecting on 19 kills in 28 attempts with only two errors. For the match, Gonzaga hit .373 and UAB .059.
The tournament continues today when Nevada (5-2) squares off against UAB (5-5) at 10 a.m. Gonzaga (3-6) takes the floor for noon and 7 p.m. matches against Ohio (5-4), then Nevada. UAB and Ohio will play at 4:30 p.m.
Paced by eight kills, 10 digs and four blocks by Jill Vaughn, Whitworth swept Lewis & Clark 15-4, 15-12, 15-5.
Women’s soccer
Sara Streufert scored two goals, her sixth and seventh of the season, as Gonzaga (2-4) defeated visiting Boise State (2-3) 3-1 at Martin Field.
Jenny Harvey scored the other goal for Gonzaga.
Adina Eggen, making her first appearance of the season in goal for the Bulldogs, made nine saves.
Oregon State defeated Idaho 3-2 in a non-conference match, giving the Vandals their first loss of the season.
Stacey Shaw scored both goals in a 2-0 win for Saint Mary’s over Eastern Washington at Cheney.
The Gaels (6-0) outshot the Eagles (0-5) 36-5.
In the NWAACC, Spokane and Bellevue played to a scoreless tie.
Although Spokane outshot the visitors 15-7, Sasquatch coach Cor van der Meer said his team struggled to get high-quality attempts.
CCS’s Jessica Froelich made four saves for the shutout.
CCS is 1-0-2. Bellevue is 1-0-1.
Today’s match between South Seattle and Spokane has been cancelled.
Men’s soccer
Mead High School grads played a huge role in Whitworth’s 3-0 victory over Montana State-Billings.
Mark Lupton, a junior from Mead, scored twice for Whitworth. Brandon Carlson, also a junior from Mead, scored the Pirates’ other goal.
Doug Lupton, a sophomore from Mead, made five saves and recorded his second shutout of the season for Whitworth (4-1).
UC San Diego, citing travel constraints, cancelled its women’s match at Whitworth.
Softball
Cris Coffield went 5 for 5, with three home runs, a triple and a single, to lead defending champion Fresh-Pak of Spokane to a 19-18 victory over Sports Page (Iowa) at the Coed Major National Tournament in Plano, Texas.