Oct. 13, 2007
STANFORD, Calif.- Northwestern's Courtney Plaster scored twice over the final five minutes to help snap a 1-1 tie and lead the Wildcats to a 3-1 victory over Stanford on Saturday afternoon at the Varsity Field Hockey Turf.
In an evenly-fought contest, Plaster's two late scores sealed the win for Northwestern (4-8, 0-3 Big Ten). The Wildcats entered the game with seven straight losses, although four of those defeats came against top-10 clubs.
Stanford falls to 7-3 overall, dropping its first contest in a six-game, non-conference stretch.
Stanford held advantages in shot attempts (17-16), penalty corners (11-7) and saves (10-9). The Cardinal controlled possession for much of the match but could not convert on several key scoring opportunities.
Freshman Camille Gandhi led all players with six shot attempts while senior Jess Zutz and freshman Xanthe Travlos chipped in with three each for the Cardinal.
Northwestern took a 1-0 lead into the break thanks to a goal from Alison Bullock in the 19th minute. Bullock gathered a rebound and beat senior goalkeeper Madison Bell for the score.
Stanford owned a 4-0 edge in penalty corners in the first half but came up empty.
Just over a minute into the second half, the Cardinal knotted the match at 1-1. Sophomore Rachel Mozenter registered her fifth goal of the year when she took a cross from junior Bailey Richardson and found the net.
The two squads exchanged scoring threats over the next 30 minutes until Plaster put the Wildcats ahead for good.
Both of her goals- the first at 64:50 and second at 66:14- came unassisted and appeared almost identical in sequence. In each situation, Plaster collected a loose ball and fired it into the top corner of the net for a score.
Bell made 10 saves for Stanford, equaling a season-high. Northwestern's Emily Kyle tallied nine saves.
Stanford continues its homestand on Monday, Oct. 15, when it hosts No. 3 Wake Forest at 4 p.m. The 2006 national runner-up and three-time national champion Demon Deacons finished 22-2 overall last year, captured the ACC Tournament title and advanced to the NCAA championship match for the fifth time in the last six years.