Nov. 10, 2007
STANFORD, Calif.- Stanford's impressive season came to an end on Saturday morning in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, as the Cardinal fell to No. 1 North Carolina 4-0 in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Saturday's loss closes out the 2007 campaign for Stanford, which raced out to a blistering 6-0 start, endured a brief slump midway through the season and won five of its last six games- including its conference tournament and a play-in game- just to qualify for the postseason.
Not bad for a program that had struggled through five consecutive losing seasons and had not reached double-digits in victories since an 11-8 mark in 2001.
Instead, Stanford finished the year 13-8 overall, notching the second-highest win total in school history. The program record for victories is 16.
Against the top-ranked Tar Heels (21-0) on their home field, Stanford's first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2000 was a brief one. North Carolina, which has outscored its opponents 94-12 and registered 14 shutouts on the year, scored four goals before halftime and held a 17-2 shot advantage over the first 35 minutes.
But that was it. The Cardinal defense held tough in the second half, holding North Carolina scoreless and limiting the Tar Heels to just six shots. Much like the season itself, a young Cardinal squad showed signs of good things to come.
"I was really proud of the way our team played, particularly in the second half," said Lesley Irvine, named NorPac Coach of the Year after guiding Stanford to its first conference tournament championship since 2000 and first appearance in the national rankings since 2001. "I think we showed a tremendous amount of heart and determination. Our team is very, very young and we are excited for the future of this program. Qualifying for the NCAA Tournament is a great achievement to build on."
North Carolina outshot Stanford 23-4 and also held a 7-0 edge in penalty corners. Katelyn Palgowski scored two of the Tar Heel's first three goals, with her second coming at the 18:59 mark to give North Carolina a 3-0 lead.
Ten minutes later, Britt van Beek scored unassisted to round out the scoring.
Hillary Braun, Bailey Richardson, Midori Uehara and Jess Zutz all attempted shots for the Cardinal. Perhaps Stanford's best chance to score came right before halftime, but Zutz was denied on a penalty stroke by North Carolina keeper Brianna O' Donnell.
Madison Bell made a season-best 11 saves in goal.