Stanford football (continued from page 31)
Don Feria/stanfordphoto.com
Stanford was on the brink of a possible conference title last year before losing to California, and a win over the Ducks two weeks previously helped put the Cardinal in that position. “You have to embrace playing the best in the country,” Harbaugh said. “We have to challenge ourselves to play great football.” Last week Stanford beat Notre Dame, 37-14, for its first win in South Bend since 1992. This week the Cardinal will be looking for its first win in Eugene since 2001. Stanford hasn’t been to the Rose Bowl since 2000, following the 1999 season. Since Harbaugh has taken over, Stanford ended its longest streak of losing seasons at seven by qualifying for the Sun Bowl last year. Is the Rose Bowl the next logical step? “There’s no question Oregon has a great offense, maybe the best in the country,” Harbaugh said. “They have a great play maker and a lot of speed on both sides of the ball. We’d like to limit their scoring.” Oregon’s offense ranks first in the nation with a 57.7 points-pergame scoring average and is the first ranked team Stanford plays this season. The Cardinal defense, ranked 12th nationally with a 13.8 scoring average, will be tested in front of one of the loudest environments in the nation and the Ducks play fast. They get back to the line of scrimmage and are ready to go, go, go. “They try to get you with their tempo,” Harbaugh said. “They hope you can’t get lined up right. Their coaching and execution is outstanding.” Oregon’s LaMichael James leads the Pac-10 in rushing with a 158.3 yards per game average. He’s rushed for at least 100 yards in 12 consecutive regular-season games. Ducks’ quarterback Darron Thomas (like Stanford’s Andrew Luck, a Houston native) throws for 205 yards a game and is a dangerous runner. No one has been able to slow them down yet. “You have to be committed and focused,” Stanford linebacker Shayne Skov said. “They are unique in their spread offense. Guys have to be in the right spots this week.” Stanford’s offense, which ranks fourth nationally with a 48.0 scoring average, will also be at a bit of disadvantage inside raucous Autzen Stadium, which will be overflowing with more than 54,000 fans. “It’s a great college football atmosphere,” Luck said. “It’s a special place and Oregon is a great team. We have to work on communicating in different ways.” The Ducks rank first in the conference in scoring defense with an 11.0 average. Luck threw his first two interceptions of the year last week, but he’s only been sacked once this year. Should he continue to get time to throw, the game could resemble a tennis match with the way these two offenses can march down a field. Luck’s stock as a quarterback has risen to new highs and he shows no signs of taking backward steps. He
leads the conference with a 169.5 passing efficiency, throws for an average of 228 yards a game and averages 268.8 yards of total offense. Stepfan Taylor ranks 10th in the Pac-10 with his 66.2 yards rushing average but that doesn’t tell the whole story. The Cardinal averages 223.2 yards on the ground, spreading it around among several runners. Oregon averages 321.8 yards on the ground. Defensively the Ducks lead the Pac-10 in turnover margin at a plus11. NOTES: Stanford senior placekicker Nate Whitaker was honored as the Pac-10’s Special Teams Player of the Week after matching a school record with five field goals in last weekend’s 37-14 victory over host Notre Dame. Whitaker, who a week earlier missed his first two career PAT attempts, was 5-for-5 on field goals and accounted for 17 of Stanford’s 37 points. Whitaker’s five field goals — from distances of 24, 41, 36, 33 and 29 yards — tied Stanford’s single-game record first set by John Hopkins against California in 1990. Whitaker is 8-for-8 in field goal attempts this season and has made 13 straight field goals dating to last season. . . . There were no official reports on the status of injured running backs Jeremy Stewart and Tyler Gaffney. There was also no word on safety Michael Thomas, who had his left foot in a boot and was on crutches following Saturday’s game . . . Stanford sophomore linebacker Shayne Skov on Owen Marecic’s improvement at linebacker: “He’s come a long way and that’s because he’s dedicated and immerses himself every week. Him and Andrew spend the most time watching film.” . . . Offensive lineman James McGillicuddy wore number ‘41’ for the Notre Dame game and was used as an extra blocker on several power formations. He lined up in the backfield on short-yardage situations. “He was in my ear telling me to throw him the ball,” Luck said. “He’s convinced he was open. He went up to Wales (Ryan Whalen) and said the defensive back hit him in the middle of running his route. ‘Isn’t that pass interference?’ Ryan told him, ‘Nope, that’s being re-routed.’ . . . Saturday’s game will be televised on ABC at 5 p.m. N
John Todd/stanfordphoto.com
Sports
Stanford QB Andrew Luck has been sacked only once this season.
The top-ranked Stanford women’s volleyball team will put its 11-0 record and lofty status on the line this weekend while hosting Oregon State on Friday and Oregon on Saturday, both at 7 p.m.
Stanford roundup (continued from page 31)
United States in the Under-20 World Cup last summer and is on the Hermann Trophy watch list. Henninger, a teammate of Stanford’s Teresa Noyola from club ball to the U.S. U-20 national team, has a 0.61 goals-against average. Freshman Emily Oliver has emerged as Stanford’s top goalkeeper. She has made five starts and carries a 0.42 GAA. Shelby Payne, another freshman, is also part of a starting rotation on the forward line with Press and Lindsay Taylor. Anchored by sophomore Alina Garciamendez, a member of the Mexican national team, the Stanford defense has played an important role in keeping opponents out of the net. Rachel Quon, who also played with Noyola and Henninger this summer, is joined by sophomore Courtney Verloo and junior Camille Levin to form a tough barrier in the back. Stanford has a 26-match home winning streak and a 30-match home unbeaten streak heading into the weekend. Stanford’s last loss at home was in the third round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament, losing to Connecticut, 2-0, on Nov. 23. Stanford leads the Pac-10 in every team and individual offensive stat. As a team, Stanford leads in shots (212), points (98), goals (32), goals per game (3.20), assists (34), assists per game (3.40), and corner kicks (63). Press leads the conference in shots (72), shots per game (7.20), points (30), points per game (3.00), goals (13), goals per game (13), and game-winning goals (5). Noyola leads in assists (8) and assists per game (0.80). Women’s volleyball The No. 1 continues its sponsorship here as Stanford (11-0) prepares for its Pac-10 home openers against Oregon State on Friday at 7 p.m. and 11th-ranked Oregon on Saturday at 7 p.m.
In addition to its top ranking, Stanford leads the nation with 15.41 kills per set and 14.32 assists per set. Alix Klineman ranks third in the nation with 3.57 kills per set and 22nd with a .398 hitting percentage. Stanford, which beat host Arizona State in four sets and host Arizona in three sets last week, is third nationally with a team hitting percentage of .332. Oregon is fifth at .310. Five of the top six teams in hitting percentage are from the Pac-10. Stanford has won all 50 meetings with Oregon State and is 47-3 against the Ducks, with one of those losses in Eugene last year. Oregon and Stanford are two of five teams with unbeaten records in the country. Four of those teams hail from the Pac-10. Oregon’s Alaina Bergsma is the reigning conference Player of the Week. Klineman won the honors the previous week. The Ducks are coming off an important victory over No. 7 Washington at home. It represented Oregon’s first win over a ranked opponent. Senior libero Gabi Ailes continues an exceptional career. She is Stanford’s career digs leader (1,790). She ranks sixth among active players in career aces (69) and ninth in career assists (345). Field hockey No. 16 Stanford travels to UC Davis for a NorPac contest on Saturday after a successful trip to the East Coast that produced a one-goal loss to top-ranked North Carolina and a 4-2 victory over No. 8 Wake Forest. One day after taking down its highest nationally-ranked opponent in nine years, Stanford moved up to two spots to No. 16 in this week’s edition of the Kookaburra/NFHCA National Coaches Poll. Stanford (2-1, 6-3) has enjoyed a school-record 14 consecutive weeks in the national rankings dating to Sept. 18, 2009. Alessandra Moss was named NorPac West Division Defensive Player of the Week for her performance against North Carolina in which she
recorded a season-best eight saves and was a big reason Stanford was able to hold the Tar Heels below their season scoring average of 4.25 goals per game. It was the second NorPac Player of the Week honor this year for Moss, who also was recognized two weeks ago. Stephanie Byrne and Jaimee Erickson have also been honored by the conference this year. UC Davis (3-4, 0-3 NorPac) saw its three-game winning streak come to an end over the weekend in a 4-3 overtime loss to California. Men’s soccer Stanford opens Pac-10 play at home against California at 7 p.m. Saturday. The Cardinal (4-4) hopes to make it five in a row. Men’s water polo Fourth-ranked Stanford (4-2) opens the SoCal Invitational in Los Angeles on Saturday against UC San Diego looking to end a twogame slide. The Cardinal plays either Concordia or UC Santa Barbara in the second round later in the day. Women’s swimming Stanford, which finished second at last year’s NCAA meet, hosts San Jose State in a nonconference meet Friday at 2 p.m. Men’s tennis Stanford players participate in the Battle of the Bay Classic in San Francisco. The three-day event begins 10 a.m. Friday at the California Tennis Club at 1770 Scott Street. In addition to the Cardinal, players from California, host USF, Santa Clara, USC, Pepperdine, San Diego State and Pacific will compete in singles and doubles. Women’s lacrosse While the fall season is unofficial, it’s worth noting that Stanford hosts California Friday at 5 p.m. California announced this will be the final season for the sport, along with baseball, and men’s and women’s gymnastics. N
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