Dec. 4, 2002
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Tournament Time...
The nation's top-ranked and top-seeded Stanford (22-5) earned the NCAA at-large bid and will travel to Los Angeles for the NCAA Championship Tournament on Saturday, Dec. 7th and Sunday, Dec. 8th. Stanford will face UC San Diego in the first semifinal at noon on Saturday, while California and Queens College will square off at 1:30 p.m. Sunday's schedule will begin with the Consolation Game at noon followed by the Championship Game at 1:30 p.m. This trip marks Stanford's 23rd appearance in the NCAA Final Four. The Cardinal has finished among the top three teams in the nation 20 times in the past 27 seasons. Stanford has claimed nine NCAA Championships and has played in the Championship match 15 times since 1976.
UC San Diego History...
Stanford has faced UC San Diego twice this season and claimed two victories over the Tritons. Stanford traveled to San Diego on Sept. 13th and posted a 14-5 win over the Tritons. Senior Peter Hudnut and sophomore Tony Azevedo made their 2002 debuts in the game and combined for eight goals. Seven different Cardinal players scores in the game while goalkeeper Nick Ellis tallied eight saves. UCSD's leading scorer was Jonathan Hopkins (brother of Stanford freshman Thomas) who had two goals. Stanford then moved north to Los Angeles for the SoCal Tournament on Sept. 14th, where after defeating Long Beach St., the Cardinal faced the Tritons for the second day in a row. With six different scorers, the Cardinal earned its fourth win by defeating UC San Diego 10-4. Azevedo put up three goals in the contest while Ellis posted another eight-save performance. With the victory the Cardinal advanced to the SoCal Semifinals - Stanford won the tournament title the next day by defeating California and UC Irvine. The Stanford-UC San Diego matchup is a family affair with three sets of brothers on opposite sides of the pool: Stanford keeper Nick Ellis and his younger brother, Triton utility man Matt; Cardinal freshman Thomas Hopkins and older brother Jonathan; and first-year Stanford assistant coach Brian Kreutzkamp and older brother Brad, a third-year UCSD assistant.
Queens College Corner...
Stanford and Queens have never faced each other. The Knights earned their NCAA bid by winning the Eastern Championship, their second conference title in the last five years. Queens College is coached by Derek Ellingson, in his third year at the helm of the program. The Knights are led by freshman John Prokhin, who has collected 58 goals in 2002. Sophomore goalkeeper Vedran Sokac has collected 249 saves this season and allowed only 169 goals as the Knights recorded a 24-3 record.
California Chatter...
The Cardinal and the Golden Bears have a storied tradition and kept the 2002 season interesting with each of the four matches this season being decided by one goal. Stanford leads the all-time series at 51-50-3, but the teams are even this year at 2-2. The first game of the season pitted the cross-bay rivals against each other in the SoCal Tournament Semifinal game on Sept. 15th. Stanford took an early 5-2 lead, but the Golden Bears rallied with four goals in the fourth quarter although they eventually fell by an 8-7 score. Azevedo and Hudnut tallied three goals apiece while Ellis collected nine saves. The two teams did not meet again until Cal visited The Farm on Nov. 2nd and claimed a 9-8 victory over their host. Azevedo notched four goals to lead the game in scoring but Cal keeper Russell Bernstein recorded 12 saves to stump the Cardinal. On Nov. 23rd, Stanford went to Berkeley for Cal's Senior Day and walked away with an 8-7 win as Azevedo again put up four goals to lead both teams and Bernstein again collected 12 saves for the Golden Bears. In the fourth matchup this season, Cal downed Stanford 8-7 in the MPSF Semifinal by scoring three goals in the fourth quarter, including two four-meter penalty shots. In goal, both keepers had impressive days, combining for 19 saves. California went on to win the MPSF Championship, earning the automatic bid to the NCAA Championship Tournament.
The Statistical File...
Stanford, with a .815 winning percentage, is currently claiming victories over its opponents by an average margin of 4.6 goals per game. At halftime, the Cardinal carries an average lead of 3.2 goals into the break after jumping out to an average first quarter lead of 1.6 goals. Stanford keeps the scoring balanced across its roster with each active offensive player scoring at least once during the 2002 season. After scoring eight goals in the MPSF Tournament, Azevedo now ranks 10th in career scoring with 158 goals and set a new single season record by accumulating 90 goals in 2002. Hudnut is 15th on the all-time scoring list with 131 career goals and keeper Ellis holds the third spot for all-time saves with 700 in his career.
Leading the Pack...
Nine Cardinal players have over 10 goals this season. Leading the team is MPSF Player of the Year Azevedo with 90 goals. Azevedo is atop the conference in scoring holding a 3.46 goals per game average. Trailing him is junior Mike Derse who began the season with nine career goals but has posted 46 in 2002. Derse has been a consistent scorer for the Cardinal, tallying at least one goal in 19 games and chalking up three or more goals in 11 of those matches. Derse scored two pivotal goals in overtime on Oct. 26th as Stanford took the 12-10 overtime win at UCLA and then put up a career-high five goals against USC on Nov. 9th, including the go-ahead goal in the fourth quarter for which Derse was named Cardinal of the Week. Hudnut has collected 42 goals in his 26 games. He has scored at least one goal in 19 of his 26 games, including a three-goal effort on Oct. 25th as the Cardinal edged UC Irvine 9-8. In Big Splash, Hudnut tallied two goals to keep the Cardinal in striking distance throughout the match.
Minding the Net...
On the opposite side of the pool, Ellis is a force to be reckoned with in the Cardinal goal. The three-time All-American keeper has posted 159 saves good for a 6.1 saves per game average. He has allowed only 165 goals this season, earning him a 6.3 goals against average - among the top in the MPSF. Backing him up is redshirt freshman Chad Taylor who has made six appearances (including one start) and compiled 13 saves.
