Up first: Vanguard

Stanford vs Vanguard at Maples on Sunday afternoon at 2:00. Basketball at last!

Sure, it's just an exhibition game, so it doesn't count statistically. But everybody gets a chance to play and the staff can try out various player combinations.

We might see the beginning of another great college career:

• In 2011 against UC San Diego, Amber had seven assists with only two turnovers; against Vanguard, she had six assists and no turnovers.
• In 2010 against Vanguard, Chiney scored 24 points and grabbed 16 rebounds for the first of her 58 career double-doubles
• In 2008 against Chico State, Lindy sank seven of 13 3-point attempts for 21 points
• In 2007 against Chico State, Ros had 11 points, five rebounds, five assists and both of Stanford's three-pointers.
• In 2007 against Chico State, Kayla had a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds.
• In 2004 against Baden Sports, Candice led the scoring with 18 points and had seven rebounds and four blocks.

The game is FREE for kids 8th grade and under. Register here for a voucher and bring all the young fans you know to Maples on Sunday.

Be sure to stick around after the game for a special Behind-The-Bench session with the entire team and coaching staff. The five freshmen will be introduced and Tara will provide a season preview and answer questions.

Can't make it to Maples? You can watch a live video of the game here, listen to the KZSU broadcast here and check live stats here.

  Vanguard Lions

Vanguard, located in Costa Mesa, is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), which has almost 300 member institutions. Other NAIA members that you may be familiar with are Menlo College in Atherton and Mills College in Oakland.

The Lions are one of the elite NAIA teams. They've advanced to the NAIA Division I National Championship for twelve straight seasons, won one championship, advanced to the semifinals twice and to the quarterfinals four times. They've been picked to finish first in NAIA Division I this season.

Vanguard and Stanford are familiar exhibition-game opponents. This will be their sixth consecutive game. Vanguard has yet to win, but it's never been for lack of effort. 18-year head coach Russ Davis likes to challenge his players. Vanguard played UCLA yesterday, will play Cal tonight, and UC Santa Barbara next Monday.

Vanguard's starters against UCLA were:

• 5'8" senior point guard Nicole Ballestero, an NAIA All-American
• 5'11" sophomore forward Samantha Doucette
• 6'0" sophomore forward Jordie Smith
• 6'3" senior center Leigha Bednar
• 5'5" senior guard Taylor Belmont

Here is Vanguard's roster.