Stanford Women's Basketball Stars Earn ACC Weekly Awards

Stanford women's basketball is returning to the national spotlight. Despite already enduring a couple of crushing losses, the Stanford Cardinal are looking like a much improved program in year two under head coach, Kate Paye.

Missing the NCAA tournament for the first time in nearly 40 years last season, the Cardinal are on a mission to get to the promised land and bring another national title back to The Farm. In the most recent NET rankings, the Cardinal are sitting pretty at No. 32.

And it is safe to say that the Cardinal went all in this offseason on building a winning roster. Headlined by a strong recruiting class that included three five-star talents in Lara Somfai, Alex Eschmeyer and Hailee Swain, the Cardinal once again have star power on their roster after struggling to establish an identity last year. Early on, those stars are already looking like the future of the program.

But Somfai in particular has shown just how good she has been for the Cardinal. Through the first 11 games of the season, starting in all of them, Somfai is averaging 10.8 points, 9.0 rebounds and 0.9 assists and is coming off of two consecutive double digit scoring games. That is why Somfai is being honored with ACC Rookie of the Week honors this week.

Junior Courtney Ogden is also being honored with a weekly award after a dominant performance against rival Cal over the weekend. The junior ended up scoring 25 points with seven rebounds, two assists and a block for good measure.

Below is a press release sent out by Stanford Athletics on Tuesday morning.

STANFORD, Calif. –Courtney Ogden was named ACC Co-Player of the Week and Lara Somfai was voted ACC Rookie of the Week for games played between December 8-14, the conference announced Monday. ACC women’s basketball weekly awards are voted on by the league’s Blue Ribbon Panel.

Ogden and Somfai were pivotal in the Cardinal’s 78-69 win to open ACC play against Cal on Sunday afternoon. Ogden scored a career-high 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting and added seven rebounds, two assists and one block. Her efficient performance is one of 15 in the country this season in which a player has scored 25 points on at least 80.0 percent shooting, but only the second to come against a major conference opponent.

Ogden is the first Stanford player with 25 points on 80.0 percent shooting and seven rebounds since Cameron Brink against Arizona on Jan. 30, 2022 (25 points, 83.3 FG%, 15 rebounds). She became the first to have a line of 25 points, 7 rebounds, two assists, one block, and a field goal percentage of at least 80.0 percent in an ACC conference game since Georgia Tech’s Tyaunna Marshall at Virginia Tech on Jan. 23, 2014 (30 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks, 85.7 FG%).

Somfai together her fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 13 rebounds to go with a career-high three blocks. She’s the first Stanford freshman with a 12-point, 13-rebound, 3-block game since Cameron Brink at Washington State on Jan. 27, 2021 (12 points, 14 rebounds, 5 blocks) and just the third to do it in records dating back to 2002-03 (also Jayne Appel).

One of only three freshmen in the country with a 12-point, 13-rebound, 3-block game this season, Somfai is also one of one of three freshmen in the country averaging 10.8 points and 9.0 rebounds this season.

Fifth in the country in defensive rebound percentage at 32.2 percent, she is second among major conference freshmen in the country in rebounding and is third in the ACC in rebounding and tops among the league’s freshmen. Somfai is also tied for third in the ACC in double-doubles (4) and is tied for third in the nation in double-doubles among freshmen. Her four double-doubles are the most for a Stanford freshman since Ashten Prechtel had four in 2019-20.

Ogden and Somfai are Stanford’s third and fourth winners of ACC weekly awards this season. Nunu Agara was ACC Player of the Week on Nov. 24 and Somfai was ACC Rookie of the Week on Nov. 10. Somfai is the league’s first two-time Rookie of the Week this season.