Tag: Nunu Agara

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Stanford Opens ACC Play with 78-69 Victory Over Cal

STANFORD, Calif. (Dec. 14, 2025) - Stanford tops Cal78-69. Photo © Cheryl Coward ,all rights reserved.
STANFORD, Calif. (Dec. 14, 2025) – Stanford tops Cal 78-69. Photo © Cheryl Coward, all rights reserved.

By Cheryl Coward

STANFORD, Calif. – Courtney Ogden scored a career-high 25 points and Stanford used a decisive fourth-quarter run to defeat California 78-69 on Sunday afternoon at Maples Pavilion, opening ACC play with a victory over its rival in the 105th meeting between the programs.

The Cardinal (9-2, 1-0 ACC) outscored the Golden Bears 26-14 in the final period, shooting 61.5% from the floor while holding Cal to just 25.0% shooting in the quarter.

“That was a great win for our team. We’re very excited,” Stanford head coach Kate Paye said. “I was really proud of the way our team battled. I thought it came down to the fourth quarter. I think our conditioning really kicked in and really helped us.”

Ogden was nearly perfect, finishing 10-of-12 from the field while adding seven rebounds. Lara Somfai recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 12 points, 13 rebounds, and a career-high three blocks for Stanford.

“Courtney kind of stole the show,” Paye said. “They call it cooking with Courtney.”

Fourth-Quarter Surge

Cal’s Aliyahna Morris opened the fourth quarter with a driving layup to put the Golden Bears ahead 57-52, but Stanford responded with a game-changing 12-0 run over the next 4:31.

Chloe Clardy ignited the spurt with a steal and coast-to-coast layup that gave Stanford a 58-57 lead, the game’s final lead change. Talana Lepolo capped the run with a banked three-pointer at the 4:46 mark, extending the Cardinal advantage to 64-57.

“I have confidence in our team,” Paye said of the comeback. “We’ve been in those situations before. Look at people in the huddle. They’re talking to each other, they’re positive, they’re encouraging each other.”

Cal’s Sakima Walker converted a three-point play to cut the deficit to four with just over three minutes remaining, but Clardy answered with a triple on Stanford’s next possession. After Somfai blocked Walker in the post, Ogden drove for a layup while drawing a foul on Morris and completed the three-point play to push the lead to 72-62 with 1:44 remaining.

The Cardinal made seven of their final eight shots to seal the victory, while Cal missed 11 consecutive field goals over a five-minute stretch in the fourth quarter.

Balanced Attack

Clardy contributed 13 points off the bench, connecting on 3-of-4 from three-point range. Nunu Agara scored 12 points, nine rebounds and a career-high five assists, with three of those assists coming in the fourth quarter.

“This is a great team win,” Paye said. “It takes everyone to kind of do something like this. Some fantastic individual performances. Chloe Clardy is so steady for us out there, and she really got her knocking down three threes. That was very helpful. And Talana four assists, no turnovers.”

Stanford finished with 13 assists against just six turnovers and shot 57.1% from three-point range (8-of-14) for the game. The Cardinal held a 42-40 rebounding edge, with Somfai’s 13 boards leading all players.

Somfai’s dominance on the glass drew praise from her coach.

“Lara is a total glass eater,” Paye said. “I mean, she just gobbles them up. 13 rebounds, that was huge.”

Cal’s Effort

Taylor Barnes led Cal (8-4, 0-1 ACC) with 16 points, scoring seven in the opening quarter. Walker and Morris each added double figures with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Gisella Maul pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds off the bench, her second double-digit rebounding performance of the season.

The Golden Bears played most of the game without starting guard Lulu Twidale, who was limited to 17 minutes due to foul trouble before fouling out. Cal shot 36.8% from the field for the game compared to Stanford’s 43.9%.

The game featured six ties and seven lead changes before Stanford took control in the fourth quarter. Cal led 15-13 after the first quarter and trailed 34-31 at halftime. The Golden Bears outscored Stanford 24-18 in the third quarter to take a 55-52 advantage into the final period.

Consecutive three-pointers from Twidale and Barnes tied the game at 44-44 midway through the third quarter, and Morris hit a step-back three at the buzzer to give Cal the three-point edge heading into the fourth.

Series History

The victory improved Stanford to 82-23 all-time against Cal and 39-9 at home in the series. The win also snapped Cal’s two-game winning streak in the rivalry after the Golden Bears swept Stanford last season for the first time since 1985-86.

What’s Next

Stanford will face No. 20 Washington on Friday at 7 p.m. at Maples Pavilion before participating in the Invisalign Bay Area Women’s Classic, a doubleheader on Sunday, December 21, at Chase Center in San Francisco. The Cardinal will face Oregon at 3 p.m. PT in a game televised on ESPN. The second game features Cal taking on USC at 5:30 p.m. PT.

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Fast Start Propels Stanford To Dominant 90-55 Win Over Cal Poly

STANFORD, Calif. (Nov. 9, 2025) - Stanford tops Cal Poly to move to 3-0. Cal Poly's Alana Goosby and Stanford's Hailee Swain. Photo © Cheryl Coward ,all rights reserved.
STANFORD, Calif. (Nov. 9, 2025) – Stanford tops Cal Poly to move to 3-0. Cal Poly’s Alana Goosby and Stanford’s Hailee Swain. Photo © Cheryl Coward, all rights reserved.

By Cheryl Coward

STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford’s mix of veterans and underclassmen delivered a commanding performance Sunday afternoon, rolling to a 90–55 win over Cal Poly (1-1) at Maples Pavilion. Utilizing a balanced offensive attack that saw five players score in double figures and a suffocating first-half defense, the Cardinal led wire-to-wire after the opening minute.

With depth and size proved overwhelming. The Cardinal dominated the glass, outrebounding Cal Poly 39-26, and owned the interior with a 42-24 advantage in points in the paint. The home team shot 51% from the field compared to 39% by Cal Poly. Stanford (3-0) also capitalized defensively, forcing 21 turnovers and converting them into 25 points.

Balanced Attack

Junior forward Nunu Agara led her team with 16 points and seven rebounds, while freshman Lara Somfai recorded her third straight double-double with 14 points, 10 boards, plus three steals. Freshman Hailee Swain added 12 points, Chloe Clardy scored 14, and Courtney Ogden chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds.

Head coach Kate Paye praised Ogden’s all-around play. “I was really, really excited about the way Courtney Ogden played,” Paye said. “She came out with a very aggressive mindset, got herself going on the glass, rebounding, playing great defense, and from there, her offense just flowed.”

Agara’s steadiness in the post continued to anchor the Cardinal frontcourt. “I think it was just more just taking balanced shots,” she said of her efficient 6-of-10 shooting performance.. “I feel like a lot of my shots in the past few games were just off balance and kind of just rushed shots.” Paye added, “Nunu with 16 and 7 rebounds, led us in offensive rebounding with five again, perfect from the line.”

Early Dominance

Stanford built a 28–13 first-quarter lead behind 65 percent shooting and extended it to 52–21 at halftime with a 24–8 rebounding edge.

Cal Poly’s Vanessa McManus kept the Mustangs competitive with a game-high 29 points on 11-of-17 shooting, including 3-for-5 from deep. Paye credited her effort, saying, “She was fantastic, and we were working really hard on her. Believe me, we will be studying that tape. We tried to make a lot of kind of adjustments. Even at halftime, we talked about her.”

Depth on Display

Stanford’s depth sealed the win late, with the bench contributing 30 points, highlighted by freshman Carly Amborn, who went 2-for-2 from three in the fourth quarter. Ogden praised Amborn’s readiness coming off the bench late in the game: “I want to give a shout out to Carly, because she came in two for two, basically unconscious from the three point line. So super proud of her.”

Up Next

Stanford now heads north to play at Washington State on Nov. 14. (4 p.m. PT, ESPN+). Cal Poly also heads to the Pacific Northwest to play at Seattle University on Nov. 15 (1 p.m. PT)

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Freshmen Shine As Stanford Rolls Past UNCG In Season Opener, 87-42

STANFORD, Calif. (Nov. 3, 2025) – Stanford tops UNCG in the Cardinal season opener. Photo © Baranduin Briggs, all rights reserved.

By Cheryl Coward

STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford opened the season with a dominant 87–40 win over UNC Greensboro on Monday night at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal relied on depth, efficient shooting, and interior dominance to take full control from the opening tip. A trio of freshmen were among the Stanford quintet who scored in double digits.

Defense sets the tone

The Cardinal held UNCG to just 25.9 percent shooting and limited the Spartans to single-digit scoring in two of four quarters. Junior guard Jeni Levine scored 18 of UNCG’s 42 points, but no other Spartan reached double figures.

“I’m very excited about what I saw tonight,” Stanford head coach Kate Paye said. “We start with our defense first — holding them to 42 points is pretty good. Number one [Levine] kind of went off, so that’s something we can study.”

Somfai, bench power Cardinal offense

Freshman forward Lara Somfai led all Stanford scorers with 15 points and eight rebounds, going 6-of-12 from the floor in a strong collegiate debut. The Cardinal bench produced 42 points, with freshman forward Alexandra Eschmeyer contributing 13, and guards, freshman  Hailee Swain and junior Chloe Clardy, adding 12 each.

Paye praised the poise of the freshman group while crediting the program’s leadership structure: “What our freshmen are able to do right now is because they’re getting great mentorship and leadership from our upper class players who are really taking them under their wings.”

She also described Swain as a “speedster” who “gets to the basket.”

Stevenson, Agara lead the effort on the glass

Stanford controlled the boards 44–23, led by junior forward Mary Ashley Stevenson, who grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench.

“Coming off the bench, leading us in rebounding with 10 boards — that is awesome,” Paye said. “She’s improved a lot and is a tremendous leader and a captain for our team.”

Junior forward Nunu Agara added 10 points and six rebounds, helping Stanford dominate the paint with a 44–12 edge in interior scoring.

Lepolo returns to starting role

Senior point guard Talana Lepolo, who missed most of last season due to injury, returned to the starting lineup and added four points, four assists, and two rebounds in 20 minutes of play.

“Talana is a very smart player. She’s very competitive. She’s a great defender. She knows our system,” Paye said. “She can organize the floor, she can orchestrate things, and she helps people look good.”

Levine paces UNCG

For UNC Greensboro, graduate guard Jeni Levine was the primary offensive weapon, leading all scorers with 18 points. Levine was aggressive, attempting 21 field goals, but the rest of the Spartans struggled to find a rhythm. Freshman guard Leyla Minor was the only other UNCG player in double figures, adding 11 points off the bench.

Quick turnaround ahead

Stanford (1–0) continues a 7-day tight home schedule, beginning with Santa Clara on Thursday and Cal Poly on Sunday.

“We know things are going to come quickly,” Paye said. “So we’ve got to learn from this and turn around and get ready for Santa Clara.”

UNC Greensboro (0–1) continues its West Coast road trip as it looks to regroup after the season-opening loss when it faces San Francisco on Wednesday.