While the beginning of the season presented the question of who would step up and carry the new, young Cardinal women’s basketball team (2-0, 0-0 Pac-12), the answer seemed to have manifested itself over the weekend during the team’s pair of road wins against UC Davis and Gonzaga.
Junior forward Erica McCall recorded two double-doubles to lead the team in scoring in both wins, while junior guards Briana Roberson and Lili Thompson stepped up when the team was down, fueling the runs that would clinch both victories for the team.
In addition to the team’s returning cast members, Alanna Smith and Marta Sniezek saw the most minutes of the freshmen in their first collegiate games. Sniezek started both games and recorded a game-high 4 assists against UC Davis, while Smith was the second-highest Cardinal scorer against the Aggies, going 6-of-11 for 13 points.
Others saw flashes of brilliance as well. Sophomore Kaylee Johnson had the 19th 10-rebound game of her career on Sunday, while junior Karlie Samuelson and sophomore Brittany McPhee also made steady contributions in points and rebounds.
The Cardinal’s wins and some impressive performances from several individuals bode well for the team moving forward. Stanford, however, did struggle to get things going early in both games, something it will have to avoid as it faces tougher, better teams throughout the season.
At Davis, Stanford trailed the Aggies by 4 points with 3:29 to go in the first quarter, though the Cardinal eventually earned a 3-point lead as the quarter came to a close. After going into halftime up by five, Stanford came out firing on all cylinders, going on a 20-2 run to open the half and building a 60-32 lead to end the third period.
While the Cardinal as a whole came out stronger in the second half — improving their shooting percentage from 31 percent in the first half to 55 percent in the third quarter — Roberson was the player who stepped up most, contributing nine of her 15 points during this stretch. Stanford’s defense also led to its offense, as 24 of its points came from 21 Aggie turnovers, 10 of which were in the third quarter alone. After a similarly dominant fourth quarter, Stanford would go on to win the game 74-45.
Two days later, Stanford struggled once more to get off to a strong start against Gonzaga. The Bulldogs scored the first 5 points of the game before Stanford got on the board, and though Stanford tied the score by the end of the quarter, Gonzaga once again took the lead early in the second quarter before Stanford equalized things by halftime.
The game remained close over the next quarter and some, with Gonzaga taking a 47-46 lead with 6:23 left to play in the game before Stanford went on a 19-1 run over the last 5:28 of the game. The stretch included 12 points from Thompson — coming off the bench again due to a minor injury — as well as some lockdown Cardinal defense that held the Bulldogs to 0-for-12 shooting. The Cardinal coasted the rest of the game to a 65-48 win, with McCall and Thompson combining for 44 of the team’s 65 total points.
Next up, the Cardinal will host their first home game of the year on Saturday, Nov. 21, when they host George Washington. The game will take place at noon at Maples Pavilion.
Contact Alexa Philippou at aphil723 ‘at’ stanford.edu.