Nov. 14, 2004
Santa Clara, Calif. - The Stanford women's soccer team fell 1-0 in a hard fought NCAA second round match to host Santa Clara at Buck Shaw Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Tina Estrada scored in the second overtime period to register the win for the Broncos, who will travel to face North Carolina in third round action next weekend. Senior goalkeeper Nicole Barnhart made several acrobatic saves for the Cardinal, who conclude their season with a 13-6-2 mark.
Both squads struggled for control in the midfield during a scoreless first half that saw the Broncos out-shoot the Cardinal by a 6-2 margin. Stanford's best scoring opportunity came just 10 minutes in when Heidi Herrick (Falmouth, Maine/Phillips Academy) collected a pass from Martha West (Fort Worth, Texas/Fort Worth Country Day) and fired off a shot towards the net that was deflected by a Santa Clara defender. Senior Nicole Barnhart (Gilbertsville, Penn./Boyertown) made a pair of impressive saves during the half and picked off a dangerous Bronco cross late in the period, despite colliding with a pair of Santa Clara attackers.
Both teams stepped up the attack in the second half, with the Broncos creating the majority of scoring opportunities. The Cardinal had a scoring chance early in the period, as sophomore Shari Summers (Canyon Country, Calif./Valencia) went on a long run and shot just wide of the Bronco net. Santa Clara had an excellent opportunity when senior Lana Bowen was fouled just outside the Cardinal box, but Barnhart collected Estrada's ensuing free kick in front of the net. With just over eight minutes remaining in regulation, Leah Tapscott (Madison, Wisc./James Madison) stole the ball in midfield and found Natalie Sanderson (Ventura, Calif./Buena) streaking into the Bronco box, but goalkeeper Julie Ryder came off of her line and made a diving stop to thwart the Cardinal attempt.
Santa Clara's Bree Horvath broke through the Stanford defense in the first overtime period, but her shot went just wide of the Cardinal post. Just minutes later, Barnhart made a diving save from a point blank shot by SCU's Estrada to preserve the scoreless tie. The Broncos finally broke through just minutes into the second overtime frame, as Estrada collected a pass from Megan Kakadelas in front of the Stanford net and punched it through to end the match.
"It was a hard fought contest," said head coach Paul Ratcliffe following the game. "Our strategy was to counter attack and I think we did that effectively. I feel like each team had an equal amount of clear chances, we just didn't get one into the back of the net."
Senior forward Marcie Ward (Alamo, Calif./Carondelet) made the start for the Cardinal despite having sustained an injury earlier in the week. Ward was subbed for just seconds into the match, but moved into a tie with former standout Marcia Wallis atop the Stanford career games played and games started charts with her 86th career appearance.
Barnhart was outstanding in net, collecting four saves on the afternoon. The Broncos out-shot the Cardinal by a 16-4 margin, with Estrada attempting a game-high nine shots.
| 1 | 2 | OT | 2OT | = | F | |
| Stanford (13-6-3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | = | 0 |
| Santa Clara (16-4-2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | = | 1 |
Scoring Summary: SCU: Estrada (Kakadelas, Horvath) 100:55;
Saves: Barnhart (STAN) 4; Ryder (SCU) 0
Shots: SCU 16, Stanford 4
Corners: SCU 6, Stanford 3
Fouls: SCU 14, Stanford 10