CHAMPAIGN In dire need of a victory, 18th-ranked Stanford turnedto its two big guns.Stanford 91 Illinois 78
Olympia Scott and Vanessa Nygaard did not disappoint theCardinal, combining for 50 points to lead the team to a 91-78 victorySunday against fifth-ranked Illinois.
"It definitely was a must-win situation for our team," saidScott, who scored 26 points, two more than Nygaard. "We'redefinitely disappointed that we don't have a winning record, butwe're not down in the dumps about it."Milena Flores added 17 points and Melody Peterson 15 points andfour steals for Stanford (2-3), which avoided its worst start in 17seasons."It's great to see them step up and make some big plays,"Cardinal coach Tara VanDerveer said of Flores and Peterson. "Theydid a great job of getting their hands on the ball, especially downthe stretch. Their quickness is their strength."The Illini (4-4), who lost for the third time in five days, werepaced by Tauja Catchings' 15 points and nine rebounds. AshleyBerggren and Alicia Sheeler combined for 19 points and 18 reboundsfor Illinois."I don't think we need to push any panic buttons yet," Illinicoach Theresa Grentz said. "I think we've learned a great deal.Again, we're not playing cupcake teams."For Illinois, the loss at Huff Gym was its first since Feb. 18,1996. The Illini had lost at Southwest Missouri State and attop-ranked Tennessee earlier in the week."We've gained a lot of experience," Catchings said. "Everybodyrealizes it's going to help us in March."
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