Nov. 4, 2010
DAVIDSON, N.C.- In almost a carbon copy of last year's opening round matchup, Stanford overwhelmed Appalachian State 10-3 on Thursday afternoon in the first round of the 2010 NorPac Championship.
Stanford (12-5, 5-1 NorPac) possessed too much firepower, resulting in its most impressive win of the year. The Cardinal held commanding advantages in shots (41-9) and penalty corners (20-6) while receiving two goals apiece from Becky Dru, Kelsey Lloyd, Katie Mitchell and Xanthe Travlos.
Dru led all players with a career-best 12 shot attempts and joined Lloyd and Stephanie Byrne as one of three players to also chip in with two assists.
Thursday's result should not have come as a surprise. Stanford and Appalachian State have faced off in the opening round of the tournament in five of the last six years, with the Cardinal posting a 5-0 mark and outscoring the Mountaineers by a combined 32-5 margin. That includes a 9-0 Stanford shutout in last year's tourney lid-lifter at the Varsity Turf.
Stanford next faces Longwood on Friday at 10:30 a.m. PT in the semifinals.
Stanford's 41 shots were the most since totaling 46 against Appalachian State in last year's meeting. The Cardinal fired off 20 shots in the opening half and 21 over the final 35 minutes. Stanford attempted 10 penalty corners in each period.
The Cardinal had built a 3-1 lead by halftime, thanks to a three-goal stretch during the game's first 22 minutes. Byrne scored unassisted in the fourth minute, Mitchell found the cage on a deflection at the 15:44 mark and Dru scored the first of her two goals off a penalty corner to give Stanford a 3-0 lead.
During the first 10 minutes after halftime, Stanford had produced four more goals for a 7-1 cushion. Lloyd, Emily Henriksson and Travlos all came through with unassisted goals while Dru converted on a penalty stroke in the 40th minute.
Travlos scored her second goal of the match in the 59th minute, executing on a penalty corner with assists from Byrne and Lloyd.
Kelly Allaband put away Appalachian State's third goal at the 61:31 mark, only to see Mitchell and Lloyd score again during the final seven minutes.
Alessandra Moss started and made two saves in the first 42 minutes before Julia LaSalvia added a pair of saves in relief.
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NOTES: Stanford has not lost a NorPac Tournament game since a 3-1 loss to California back on Nov. 4, 2006 ... The Cardinal has won three in a row for the third time this year ... Becky Dru converted on Stanford's first penalty stroke since Xanthe Travlos found the cage on Nov. 6, 2009 in a 6-1 victory over Longwood ... Becky Dru scored her 10th goal of the year, representing the fifth straight season a Cardinal player has scored at least 10 goals.