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Stanford's alltime women's basketball team, Part 2
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One pre-VanDerveer player is among the five players chosen for the fourth-team squad, as the selection of the top 25 Cardinal players in the 35-year history of Stanford women's basketball continues.
The fifth-team selections were included in an article posted on Monday, and we venture a little further up the talent ladder today on our way to the first-team selections coming later this week.
For most Stanford followers, it's hard to believe women's basketball at Stanford existed before Tara VanDerveer arrived in 1985 from Ohio State, and in many ways it did not. The Cardinal never won a postseason game before VanDerveer showed up, and women's basketball in general at that time was not the high-profile sport it has become. In other words, there were far fewer quality players, so judging the players from that time is difficult.
Nonetheless, we trudge ahead, with our fourth-team choices, noting again that this squad could take the floor together and do awfully well.
Jamila Wideman, G— Somewhat overhadowed by Kate Starbird, Wideman is fourth in school history in both assists and steals, and is ninth in Pac-10 history in assists. A two-time all-conference player, Wideman was the point guard during Stanford best three-year stretch – 1994-95 through 1996-97, when the Cardinal went 93-8 and reached the Final Four all three years. She graduated from NYU law school and played several seasons in the WNBA.
Julie Zeilstra, F – Although she did not have the four-year career some other Cardinal players did, Zeilstra’s 1990-91 season was one of the best in school history. She was all-conference that year while averaging 19.5 points, the ninth best scoring season in school history. She helped the Cardinal reach the Final Four that season, but her absence in the semifinal game because of leg injury contributed to the loss to Tennessee. She had started all 33 games the previous season, despite lingering Achilles problems, and helped the 1990 Cardinal to the national title.
Kelley Suminski, G – One of Stanford’s alltime best shooters, Suminski’s 84.3 percent career free-throw shooting is second best in Pac-10 history and her 40.5 percent shooting on three-pointers is ninth best on the conference list. She scored 1,364 points, and was twice all-conference (2003, 2005), but she was often overlooked because she played alongside two of Stanford’s alltime greats, first Nicole Powell and later Candice Wiggins.
Meg Metzger, F – Metzger was Stanford’s first conference player of the year, winning the honor in 1982 when the Cardinal was in the NorCal Conference, along with Cal, USF, San Jose State, Fresno State, Pacific and Santa Clara. She twice led the team in scoring and led it rebounding once while playing under Dotty McCrea, VanDerveer's predecessor. Stanford played in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 1982.
Brooke Smith, C – Only seven Stanford players have been named all-Pac-10 more than twice, and Smith is one of them, earning the honor is 2005, 2006 and 2007. The Cardinal’s first-ever transfer, Smith spent her freshman year at Duke, then returned to the Bay Area (she is from San Anselmo) to star at Stanford. She is seventh on the school’s career scoring list (14.8), seventh in rebounding average (6.9) and third in field-goal percentage (56.1).
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