Feb. 2, 2002
STANFORD, Calif. - No. 3 Stanford women's softball opened the 2002 season Saturday afternoon, completing a doubleheader sweep of rival Santa Clara at Boyd & Jill Smith Family Stadium. The Cardinal shutout the Broncos 11-0 in the first game, then recorded a 6-1 victory in game two.
Stanford (2-0) ambushed the Broncos (0-2) with an 11-run third inning in the first game of the doubleheader, which was called with the Cardinal leading 11-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning. Kira Ching and Jessica Mendoza paced the Cardinal with two hits apiece, as each player in the Stanford starting lineup recorded at least one hit in the game. Robin Walker and Mendoza both scored two runs for Stanford, while Ching led the club with two RBI on the afternoon. Tori Nyberg and Maureen LeCocq combined on the three-hit shutout.
In the second game, the Cardinal got on the board early, in the bottom of the first inning, Mendoza scored on a throwing error by the pitcher to give Stanford a 1-0 lead. Sarah Beeson roped a two-RBI double two innings later. Cardinal hurler Dana Sorensen carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning before Santa Clara freshman Kelly Johnson singled to left for the Broncos' only hit of the contest. The Cardinal would make it 4-0 when Mendoza's RBI single in the bottom of the fifth scored Walker after she tripled with one out in the inning. Mendoza would later single home LeCocq with two outs in the bottom of the sixth, and Elizabeth Bendig scored the final Cardinal run when Beeson reached on an error by Santa Clara's right fielder. The Broncos would score their only run of the game in the top of the seventh inning. Sorensen was masterful on the mound, limiting Santa Clara to one hit in five shutout innings.
With two outs in the top of the seventh, Bronco sophomore Rachel Sherman walked. She advanced to second on an error by the Cardinal second baseman, while junior Lauren Fissori reached first on a fielder's choice. Another Stanford error scored Sherman for the only Bronco run of the day.
The Broncos will continue action against Southwest Missouri State at the Cal Poly Tournament on February 8. The invitational will continue in San Luis Obispo through the weekend with Santa Clara also facing Colorado State, host Cal Poly, Southern Utah and UC Santa Barbara.
