Cardinal Hitter Strikes Again

In four years at Stanford, Ogonna Nnamani has built a volleyball portfolio that no one currently in the college game can match.

Nnamani has already won an NCAA championship and been honored as an All-American three times. The Normal, Ill., native also competed in the Olympics this summer, beginning what may be a long career with the U.S. national indoor team.

Her career in college volleyball will come to an end in today’s national championship match against Minnesota at the Long Beach Arena. Not surprisingly, she figures to play a large role in the Cardinal’s hopes of gaining a sixth NCAA title.

Nnamani was named co-national player of the year Friday along with Ohio State senior Stacey Gordon. Minnesota Coach Mike Hebert referred to the explosive 6-foot outside hitter often as the Gophers prepared for their first title match against an opponent that is playing its third in the last four years.

“We have a lot of tape on Stanford, and what I’ve seen so far is a lot of Ogonna Nnamani hitting the ball straight down over the block,” Hebert said. “We’re going to have to cope with that and figure a way to stop Ogonna between now and tomorrow.”

In the semifinals Thursday against Washington, Nnamani was virtually unstoppable for Stanford (29-6). The senior attempted 78 kills, finding the floor on 33 of them while committing only seven errors for a .333 hitting percentage.

Washington’s front row was so preoccupied with her that it left many opportunities for teammates Kristin Richards and Jennifer Hucke to attack with success in the Cardinal’s 30-25, 23-30, 30-27, 30-24 victory.

“I’ve said that we combine equally into one player,” Hucke said of Richards. “We try to play well and take the heat off Ogonna. We saw that the blockers would immediately go to where she was ... and they were not paying attention to the middle.”

Nnamani, who holds the Pacific 10 Conference record for kills, downplayed her impact on the college game this season.

“It’s a reflection of my team,” she said.

“I don’t think of it as my own performance, but I think of it as the performance of the entire team this year.”

Minnesota (33-4) will present a major challenge. The Golden Gophers are having their best season in school history and are playing in their second consecutive volleyball Final Four. They were ranked No. 1 early in the season and have been ranked among the top five for 16 consecutive weeks.

An intriguing matchup will be whether All-American libero Paula Gentil, considered by many the best defensive player in the nation, can help neutralize Nnamani. Gentil played against her two years ago in an early-season tournament match.

“We did all right against her,” Gentil said. “I dug a couple off of her, but she got her share of kills too.”

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The Facts

* What: NCAA women’s volleyball championship

* Who: Stanford (29-6) vs. Minnesota (33-4)

* When: Today, 1 p.m., ESPN2

* Where: Long Beach Arena