Nov. 13, 2010
CHAPEL HILL, N.C.- Despite a late push in the game's final 10 minutes, No. 19 Stanford's season came to an end on Saturday morning in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, as the Cardinal fell to No. 2 North Carolina 3-1.
Saturday's loss closes out an impressive 2010 campaign for Stanford, which finished 15-6 overall, captured the NorPac Tournament championship for the fourth straight year and remained a fixture in the national rankings for all but one week.
The Cardinal (15-6, 5-1 NorPac), making its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in school history and third over the last four seasons, was searching for its first postseason victory. Meanwhile, No. 2 North Carolina (20-2, 4-1 ACC) was making its 27th postseason appearance and looking to defend its 2009 NCAA championship.
The first-round pairing represented a rematch from earlier this season, when the Tar Heels edged the Cardinal 2-1 back on Sept. 26 in Chapel Hill, N.C. In that game, then-No. 1 North Carolina held advantages in shots (16-2) and penalty corners (7-1) but Stanford goalkeeper Alessandra Moss made eight saves to allow the Cardinal to stay within striking distance.
That result, along with a 4-2 road upset of No. 8 Wake Forest the following day and several other near misses against top-10 competition throughout the year, figured to give Stanford confidence against another nationally-ranked opponent.
Moss certainly did her part again the second time around, making a career-high 17 saves off 25 North Carolina shot attempts in an outstanding performance that prevented the Tar Heels for putting the game completely out of reach.
Stanford was sluggish out of the gate and North Carolina took advantage to build a 3-0 halftime lead. The Tar Heels owned a 25-9 edge in shots, including a 13-4 advantage over the first 35 minutes.
Jaclyn Radvany gave North Carolina a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute, converting on a follow-up shot after her first attempt hit the crossbar.
Marta Malmberg scored on penalty corner with assists from Katie Ardrey and Teryn Brill at the 16:09 mark to put the Tar Heels up 2-0.
Elizabeth Stephens rounded out the scoring seven minutes later, scoring off a putback following an initial save by Moss to make it 3-0.
The score would remain the same until the 62:03 mark, when Katherine Swank tipped in a pass from Xanthe Travlos at the right side of the cage to bring Stanford within 3-1. Swank became the first Stanford player to score a goal in an NCAA Tournament game since Melissa Stai found the cage in a 6-1 loss to Old Dominion back on Nov. 11, 2000.
Three minutes later, it appeared the Cardinal had sliced the lead to 3-2 with an apparent score following a penalty corner. Trailing by one with just under five minutes remaining, Moss would be pulled from her goalkeeping position and Stanford would have one final attempt to generate a game-tying goal.
But after a lengthy stoppage of play, the officials disallowed the goal and gave possession back to North Carolina. The Tar Heels whittled down the clock to secure the victory.
While North Carolina held a considerable edge in shots, penalty corner attempts were almost even, with the Tar Heels holding a 7-6 advantage.
Moss made eight saves in the first half and nine in the second. Her previous career-high total for saves was 13, accomplished twice in 2008 and again most recently last year against Louisville on Nov. 1.
Becky Dru led Stanford with three shots, with six other players recording at least one attempt.
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NOTES: Stanford is now 0-10 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, having also made appearances in 2009, 2007, 2000, 1995, 1991, 1990, 1987, 1986 and 1985. The Cardinal owns a 3-1 record in NCAA Play-In games, which are not counted in the overall record ... For only the third time this year, Stanford surrendered three goals in a match ... Stanford's 15 wins rank as the third-most in school history, behind last year's record-setting 17-win campaign and a 16-6 mark in 1997 ... The Cardinal has totaled 32 victories over the last two years combined, more than the 31 wins accumulated from 2006-08 ... Head coach Tara Danielson is the program's winningest first-year head coach, and her career record now stands at 21-19 overall. Danielson led Sacred Heart to a 6-13 finish in 2000 ... Stanford finished 11-4 away from home this year (6-3 road, 5-1 neutral) ... Of the 18 Cardinal players to appear in a game this year, 15 scored at least one goal and 16 registered at least one point ... Becky Dru capped an incredible sophomore season, leading the team in goals (13), assists (10), points (36) and shots (88) ... Stanford outscored its opponents 32-12 in the first half of games this year and 33-11 over the second half ... The Cardinal totaled more shots (361-159) and penalty corners (173-89) than its opponents ... Saturday marked the final game for seven Stanford seniors: Heather Alcorn, Katherine Donner, Jaimee Erickson, Camille Gandhi, Alessandra Moss, Katherine Swank, Xanthe Travlos. Moss is a senior academically but has one year of eligibility remaining.