Sept. 5, 2008
STANFORD, Calif.- Kelly Fitzpatrick scored twice and led all players with four shots during No. 9 Michigan's 5-1 victory over Stanford on Friday afternoon in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Playing the middle contest of a three-game, five-day road trip, the Cardinal (0-3, 0-0 NorPac) ran into a tough match against its second straight top-10 opponent.
Two days after nearly pulling an upset before falling to No. 10 Michigan State 3-2 in overtime, Stanford was unable to overcome a second half that featured three Wolverine scores.
Michigan (1-2, 0-0 Big Ten) posted its first victory of the season in its home opener. And the Wolverines were ready for the Cardinal, looking to bounce back after back-to-back losses on the road last week against No. 1 North Carolina (6-0) and No. 3 Wake Forest (5-3).
Freshman Stephanie Byrne recorded Stanford's only goal, her team-leading second of the year. Byrne, who along with sophomore Camille Gandhi tallied two shot attempts in the contest, found the net in the 31st minute thanks to an assist from junior Rachel Mozenter.
Michigan grabbed a 2-1 first half lead, outshooting Stanford 7-1 over the first 35 minutes and 12-6 overall on the afternoon. Alicia Mayer found the net at the 23:38 mark of the first half and Fitzpatrick scored the first of her two goals four minutes later to give the Wolverines a 2-0 edge.
Byrne followed at the 30:42 mark with her second goal in as many matches, converting on a redirection along the right post. Mozenter was credited with her first assist of the season and fifth of her career.
However, the second half was all Michigan. Fitzpatrick scored unassisted to open the second half to give the Wolverines a 3-1 lead. Michala McDermott and Katie Adams provided rounded out the scoring.
Senior Bailey Richardson and sophomore Katherine Donner also registered shot attempts. The Cardinal will get a boost on offense when returning leading scorer sophomore Xanthe Travlos makes her season debut in the road trip's final game against Central Michigan on Sunday.
The neutral site match will also be played in Ann Arbor, Mich., at 7 a.m. PT.