Jan. 25, 2006

Stanford, Calif. - The Stanford Men's Volleyball team (2-6, 1-3 MPSF) will travel south to take on two ranked opponents in conference play. On Friday night at 7:00 p.m. the Cardinal will compete against No. 5 Cal State Northridge. On Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. the Cardinal will take on No. 9 UC Santa Barbara.

SCOUTING THE MATADORS
Last week CS Northridge (4-3, 0-2 MPSF) beat No. 15 IPFW in two matches, winning match one with a 3-2 score and the second match with a 3-1 score. Both of their conference losses were in four games to No. 1 BYU. The Matadors are led by junior middle blocker James Lischer. For the season, Lischer is hitting .460 with 84 kills and just 16 hitting errors in 146 attempts.

Stanford currently holds a 30-14 advantage in the series, but Northridge has won six of the last seven matches including a 3-1 win in the MPSF Tournament Play-In match last April in Northridge, Calif.

SCOUTING THE GAUCHOS
UC Santa Barbara (2-5, 1-3 MPSF) is currently on a 3-match losing streak, most recently having lost twice to No. 1 ranked BYU in Provo, Utah. The Gauchos are led offensively by junior opposite Evan Patak. On the year Patak has recorded 147 kills, averaging 5.88 kills per game, along with 18 service aces, averaging .72 service aces per game.