Franci Girard of the women’s volleyball team has a lot to look forward to: Studying in Beijing, graduating in Beijing and a job offer in New York City.

But first things first for the senior middle blocker. Girard is looking to keep her eyes on the prize — bringing home her second NCAA title for Stanford in the upcoming month.

One of the team captains this year, Girard was a starter on the team that beat Minnesota to take home the 2004 Championship and was on the court for last year’s final-match loss to Nebraska.

“Of course, I’ll never forget the feeling of winning the Final Four my freshman year,” she said. “But I also know what it feels like not to win. I think that has been where a lot of my passion comes from this year.”

She and senior teammate Bryn Kehoe, the Cardinal’s setter, added one accomplishment that had so far eluded them when Stanford beat Washington in Seattle last week — the first such victory in their collegiate careers.

“I am really proud of us,” Girard said. “I think that we knew how much was at stake. For me and Bryn, it has been a long journey and we have gone up there every year and not had it turn out the way we wanted it to, so it felt really, really good.”

After hosting Arizona and Arizona State this weekend, the Cardinal will face No. 6 Cal in the final Pac-10 match of the season. Though the Cardinal will likely host in the first round of playoffs and is a pre-selected Regional host, that match is officially the last home game of the season and thus Senior Night.

“I think I am still in denial,” Girard said. “I feel like a senior at times, but I don’t feel like it should be my last year. It’s sad and I know I’m going to be a mess on Senior Night.”

Girard has come a long way since first stepping on the court in 2004. A four-year starter, she is currently fourth on the team with 183 kills, and her hitting percentage of .334 ranks seventh in the Pac-10. She recorded a career-best 15 kills earlier this year against Minnesota and is having her best offensive season yet at Stanford.

“One thing that [head coach] John [Dunning] always tells me is ‘When you do something, do it with a purpose,’” she said. “I think especially my freshman and sophomore year, I would just go up to hit, and in college you can’t do that because everybody is too good. I think I have learned how to see the block and think in midair to decide what the best shot is. And everything I do now is with a purpose.”

She carries that same mentality into working with her sorority, Delta Sigma Theta, where she has recently helped organize a fashion show to raise awareness of women’s issues worldwide and a clothing drive for the victims of the fires in southern California.

“It’s something I take a lot of pride in,” she said.

An International Relations major, Girard is also looking forward to spending her spring quarter abroad at Stanford’s campus in China and already has a job offer for next year from Goldman-Sachs.

“I don’t know if I am going to take that yet,” she said. “I really want to play overseas as well, so I have a lot of exciting opportunities for next year to choose from.”

For now, though, the priority is getting three more wins in conference and carrying that momentum into the NCAA Tournament.

“I think that we are at the point in the season where teams know us, they know our tendencies,” she said. “Every game is just a dogfight — everybody is really going for it and really wants it. Arizona State is in a situation where they need to win to get into the tournament, so they will be going hard. I think that basically we need to focus on our serving and passing and just execute.”

The Cardinal (24-2, 13-2) swept both schools on a swing through Arizona last month. Against the Sun Devils (15-12, 7-7), junior outside hitter Cynthia Barboza had 15 kills to lead eight players hitting .400 or better — Girard had a kill on each of her seven swings on the night. Junior middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo had 11 kills and hit .455 in Stanford’s 3-0 victory over the Wildcats (13-14, 3-11).

The Sun Devils bounced back from a loss to Washington to beat Arizona last weekend. Freshman Sarah Reaves is ASU’s top hitter — and missed the last match against Stanford with an injury — while libero Sydney Donahue anchors the defense with a conference-leading 6.16 digs per game, ninth-best in the nation.

The Wildcats arrive at Maples mired in a two-game losing streak after dropping the in-state rivalry match to ASU and then falling in a non-conference match against Colorado State. Randy Goodenough leads the Arizona offense with 354 kills and Dominique Lamb is second in the conference in blocking with 1.51 per game.

Freshman outside hitter Alix Klineman had a career-high 22 kills in Stanford’s 3-1 win over Cal (20-6, 10-5) in the Pac-10 season opener. Cal won the first game of the match before the Cardinal came back to win three straight.

Cal lost to No. 4 Washington in four games last weekend, but had won their previous four matches and have only two losses in their last 12. Outside hitters Hana Cutura and Angie Pressey each have over 300 kills on the season and Ellen Orchard’s 1.65 blocks per game is the best in the Pac-10.

So does the Cardinal have what it takes to beat Cal and make a run at another championship?

“Absolutely,” Girard said. “We definitely have the talent and we definitely have the focus. We are motivated and I think we have some great leaders — not just the seniors but from all the classes — and we have stepped up in tough situations. I have complete faith in every single person that steps on the court.”