Nov. 24, 1998

STANFORD, Calif. - The Stanford's men's volleyball team received national letters of intent from four Southern California recruits, men's head coach Ruben Nieves announced Tuesday.

William Curtis and William Strickland, both of Harvard-Westlake School in North Hollywood, as well as Kyle Vos Strache of Malibu High School in Malibu and Curt Toppel of Loyola High School in Los Angeles all signed to play for the Cardinal as part of the Class of 2003.

Curtis is a 6'5" outside hitter and was a member of the 1998 USA Youth National Team (17 & Under). He is a Junior Olympic gold medalist and All-American.

At 6'9", Strickland is the tallest of the recruits and is listed as an outside hitter. He is also a Junior Olympic gold medalist and All-American.

Vos Strache is a 6'5" middle blocker was a starter on the 1997 USA Junior Olympic National Champion gold medal team.

Toppel was the only high school player on the 1998 USA Junior National Team (19 & Under). He started as a 6'8" middle blocker.

"We are extremely pleased and excited about having these talented players decide to attend Stanford," Nieves said. "I believe this group of players assures Stanford of having the top recruiting class in the country. They will make an immediate impact on our program and give us a chance to be a major factor in the national championship picture for the next few years.