Oct. 24, 2008
STANFORD, Calif.- Carolina Bistue scored off a penalty corner late in the second half to secure a 2-1 victory for No. 15 California over Stanford on Friday afternoon in Berkeley.
Bistue's game-winner occurred on California's eighth penalty corner attempt, as the Golden Bears held an 8-1 overall edge in that category and a 5-0 advantage in the opening period.
Stanford, which suffered its eighth one-goal defeat on the year, drops to 4-10 overall. California improved to 12-3, winning for the sixth time in seven games.
Friday's loss does not factor into either team's conference record, as only next week's rematch at Stanford will count toward the NorPac standings. California (5-0) has already locked up the regular-season title and No. 1 seed in the NorPac Tournament, while Stanford (2-2) is looking to improve its seeding and will first face Pacific on Sunday afternoon in a NorPac counting match.
Last year the Cardinal snapped an 18-match losing streak to the Golden Bears with a 3-1 victory in the NorPac Tournament championship game, highlighting a breakthrough season that included 13 victories and the club's first NCAA Tournament berth since 2000.
This year, California has enjoyed one of its best campaigns in program history as the Golden Bears have been a fixture in the national rankings.
On Friday, both teams battled through a scoreless first half before California took control late in the game.
Junior Midori Uehara continued her stellar season, scoring her team-leading eighth goal of the year to even the match at 1-1.
California held an 11-9 advantage in shot attempts, including an 8-2 edge over the first 35 minutes. Redshirt freshman Alessandra Moss played a big part in helping Stanford stay within striking distance, making five of her six saves in the opening period.
In the 38th minute, Natalie Nurnberg gave the Golden Bears a 1-0 lead when she took an assist from Kellie York and scored from the middle of the circle.
About six minutes later, Uehara's goal knotted the game at 1-1. Uehara redirected senior Bailey Richardson's pass into the circle and past California keeper Kelly Knoche. The assist was Richardson's fourth of the year.
Bistue then scored her game-winner at the 55:29 mark following a penalty corner. York put the ball in play, Rachel Moffitt made a stick stop and Bistue found the cage.
Freshman Stephanie Byrne tallied a game-high three shots for Stanford.
The Cardinal closes out the weekend on Sunday, Oct. 26, at Pacific. The contest begins at 3 p.m.