Stanford Begins 2008 with League Win

Stanford 1^st XV notched its first win in NorCal League play with a 36-20 victory over the University of Nevada, Reno Wolfpack.  The Cardinal were able to overcome a sluggish start and a 15-0 deficit by scoring six unanswered tries before Reno scored a last minute try with the game out of reach.  Throughout the game, Stanford benefited from the advantage of a strong scrum and solid lineouts.  The Cardinal was also able to exploit shaky play from the Reno back three with timely kicks towards the Reno try zone.

                The game began extremely poorly for the Cardinal as it lost starting lock and Captain Pat Danahy (Co-Terminal MA 2008) to a shoulder injury and conceded its Reno’s first try within four minutes of kickoff.  Reno scored its first on a sustained attack that repeatedly penetrated the Stanford line eventually scoring in the corner (#10 good on the conversion).  After several minutes of sloppy back and forth play, Reno was able to extend their lead when Stanford conceded a penalty between the posts inside its defensive 22 and Reno #13 banged through the penalty kick.  The Wolfpack opened up a 15-0 lead when a chip kick from Reno #9 bounced back over the heads of the retreating Stanford players and into the hands of the Reno #13 who scored the try, but was unable to make the conversion.

                Down 15-0, Stanford was able to respond in the last ten minutes of the first half with some heady plays orchestrated by winger Jon Hofius (2008).  Hofius created the first Stanford try with a chip towards the Reno goal line, which fullback Stephen Foster (2010) scooped up for a try.  Unfortunately, scrumhalf Brad Bachelder (2008) was unable to make the conversion and Stanford still faced a double-digit deficit at 15-5.  After a well-placed grubber forced the Reno #14 to kick the ball out inside the Stanford attacking 22, Hofius caught the Wolfpack sleeping with a quick lineout with outside center Johnny McCormick (2009).  McCormick then passed the ball back to Hofius who completed the exciting try.  After a Bachelder conversion, Stanford trailed 15-12 and took the momentum into halftime.

                The Cardinal came out fired up in the second half and quickly took control of the game.  After a sustained possession, halftime sub at #6 Brennan Corbett (2008) drove the ball across into try zone as Stanford grabbed the lead for the first time at 19-12 (Bachelder good on the conversion).  Corbett scored his second try five minutes later with another fringe run set up by a penalty on a Wolfpack player who played his teammate’s kick from an offside position to give the Cardinal a 24-15 (Bachelder no good on the conversion).

                Stanford continued to control the game over the next ten minutes and was unlucky not to score several times as it frequently penetrated deep into Wolfpack territory and finally scored when Bachelder dummied a short pass to the forwards and took the ball across the line for a 29-15 lead (Bachelder no good on the conversion).  Three minutes later, the Cardinal put an exclamation point on their scoring frenzy when Foster’s long run put Reno on its back foot allowing John Clark, playing flyhalf, to break through the Reno line and pass it back to McCormick who scored near the posts to make it 36-15 with the Bachelder conversion.

                Over the last fifteen minutes, play became slightly more back-and-forth with Reno scoring a try as time expired on a chip that the Reno #14 recovered and scored after a Stanford missed tackle allowed the winger to run down the right sideline.  Despite this final try, it had been a very successful day for the Cardinal who recorded five points (four for the win, one for scoring four tries) and prevented Reno from gaining a single point in the NorCal Standings.  Next week, Stanford looks to continue to improve its tackling when it takes on the California Bears in Berkeley.

Stanford Lineup: 1 Brendon Pezzack (2009), 2 Alex Shih (2008), 3 Josh Kuempel (2008), 4 Brandon Willetts (2008), 5 Pat Danahy (2008), 6 Alex Rabkin (2010), 7 Matt Cano (2008), 8 Ian Abernathy (2008), 9 Brad Bachelder (2008), 10 Trevor Haas (2010), 11 Jon Hofius (2008), 12 John Clark (2008), 13 Johnny McCormick (2009), 14 Preston Rutherford (2008), 15 Stephen Foster (2010).

Stanford Substitutions: Ethan Groveman (2010) for Danahy; Chris Riklin (2011) for Kuempel (Riklin in at 2, Shih moved to 3); Brennan Corbett (2008) for Rabkin; Riley English (2010) for Trevor Haas (English in at 13, McCormick to 12, Clark to 10).

Stanford Available but DNP: Dante DiCicco (2011); Trevor Grace (2010); Eugene Nho (2010).

Stanford Point-Scorers: Foster (1T for 5 points); Hofius (1T for 5 points); Corbett (2T for 10 points); Bachelder (1T and 3C for 11 points); McCormick (1T for 5 points).

Stanford Boivert XV Adds Exclamation Point to Successful Day

The Cardinal 2^nd XV won handily over the Reno 2^nd XV in a high-scoring affair.  The victory was highlighted by a hat trick of tries from outside center Nick Iafe (2011).  The Boivert scrum also dominated throughout the game.  Of the forwards, #8 Mike Ozowara (Co-Terminal MA 2008) and hooker Doug Cantwell (2010) stood out for their ground-gaining physical running throughout the game.  From the backs, scrumhalf Travis Lehman (2009) returned from Oxford and did particularly well controlling the game.  Flyhalf Justin Kuok (2011) demonstrated a strong pass and well-developed feel for the game that results from his significant experience playing in his native Hong Kong.  Tommy Kramer, playing at inside center, broke off numerous long runs with quick and powerful stepping.