SACRAMENTO -- Stanford senior Jayne Appel really is hurting. She might not want to talk about it. But the pain from a right ankle sprain and left knee surgery reminds the All-America center of what she has endured this season.
"I'm not going to lie and say I'm in zero pain," she said Sunday, the day before Stanford plays Xavier in the Sacramento Regional final. "I feel like out of sight, out of mind. It's easier to not think about."
Appel prefers to focus on a tall task at Arco Arena tonight where the top-seeded Cardinal (34-1) plays one of the most imposing front lines it has seen this season. The fifth-ranked Musketeers present a different problem for Stanford than its previous three NCAA tournament opponents.
Namely, size. Xavier is led by 6-foot-5 Amber Harris and 6-6 Ta'Shia Phillips and has 6-3 Brittany Moore in reserve. Harris averages 16 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Phillips has 14.2 points and 11.8 rebounds per game.
"They take up a lot of space. They block shots. They change shots," Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer said.
After waltzing through the tournament with an average victory margin of 32.6 points, the second-ranked Cardinal must subdue the Atlantic 10 Conference champions from Cincinnati to reach the Final Four.
Stanford will need the 6-4 Appel at her best to counter Xavier's mountain-like players -- even when she doesn't have the strength to dominate the post like last season. Appel missed some easy layups against Georgia in the Sweet Sixteen but scored 17 points in 24 minutes before VanDerveer took her out to rest for the Musketeers (30-3).
Appel won't blame her struggles on injuries, although she has seen her share of maladies this season. She had surgery in June to repair a meniscus ligament in her left knee. Appel suffered from the stomach flu in November and needed four IV bags of fluid to get through a game against Utah. She contracted a minor foot infection that hobbled her early in the season and suffered an ankle sprain March 2.
"I have to push off with my left knee and my right ankle," said Appel, who developed her toughness playing against brothers on the family court in Pleasant Hill. "I definitely do notice the difference. I don't want to be a player who blames missing shots on an injury. But it does have a factor whether or not I chose to acknowledge it."
The injuries haven't slowed Stanford's leader from running the floor, passing or rebounding. Appel's full-court presence has caught the attention of Xavier coach Kevin McGuff.
"The thing that really impressed me, her level of fitness," he said. "They really run the floor well. We got to make sure our posts run."
Appel, a standout water polo and basketball player at Carondelet High, has remained a tour de force in executing VanDerveer's triangle offense even as her scoring average (13.8) has dropped this season.
Appel has distinguished herself as perhaps the country's best post passer. It started, she said, from watching Larry Bird.
"You're almost creating a connection between two players," Appel said of the backdoor passes that have led to easy layups.
The best pass in her Stanford career?
"Arizona State at home, Candice going back door," Appel said without hesitation. "It sliced through. I don't know how it got there, but it got there."
The crowd-pleasing play to All-America guard Candice Wiggins, in 2008, launched Appel on a remarkable run that she hopes ends with a third consecutive trip to the Final Four next weekend in San Antonio.
"It opened up a new world of Stanford basketball," she said of involving all five positions.
Appel, who graduated last week with a degree in psychology, has three more chances to leave an indelible mark on Stanford, which hasn't won an NCAA title since 1992. Some wonder whether it's asking too much to win three without Appel completely healthy. She hasn't practiced full-court since spraining her ankle in a layup drill, and is relegated to riding a stationary bike and shooting free throws.
Appel dismisses questions about her durability, saying, "I've played in more games than any Stanford player. Ever."
VanDerveer added: "I think Jayne just blocks out pain. If I ask her how she is doing, she just says, 'Great.' "
She has always been that way.
"I don't care what it takes to play, I'm always going to push through it," Appel said, ready to prove it once again tonight.
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