April 8, 2011
Stanford, Calif. - No. 7 Stanford improved to 12-1 with a 16-6 win over MPSF rival Denver on senior night, under the lights at Cagan Stadium. The Cardinal moved to 4-0 in the conference and reeled off its 22nd consecutive win at Cagan Stadium.
"I thought it was a really good effort," said head coach Amy Bokker. "It was great to honor our seniors this way and play well in our last home game."
The Cardinal jumped out to a lead just 40 seconds into the game on a goal by Karen Nesbitt and would never trail. Sarah Flynn added a goal minutes later on the way to Stanford building a 6-1 lead in the first 21 minutes.
Flynn would score three first-half goals, while Anna Boeri added the other. The Cardinal outshot Denver 18-9 in the half and Annie Read made six saves.
The Cardinal would pour it on in the second half, scoring 10 goals in the period. Flynn would finish with four goals, while Nesbitt and Boeri each had a hat trick. Six others would add a goal, including Jacqueline Candelaria who finished a dazzling goal where she spun through traffic from behind the net.
Stanford dominated possession throughout the game, earning a 17-8 advantage on draw controls. Anna Kim became the ninth Cardinal player with at least six draw controls in the game. Leslie Foard also earned three more to add to her team-leading total of 39.
Defensively the Cardinal was terrific, allowing just the six goals. Stanford played a ride for throughout the game that frustrated Denver and forced them into 18 turnovers. Paige Farmakis led the Cardinal, causing four turnovers.
"Catherine Swanson player really well in the defense," said Bokker, who also singled out Annie Read for the job she did in goal as well.
Read finished with 12 saves in earning her 12th win of the season and 40th of her career. The senior lowered her goals against average to 9.29 for the season.
Stanford will now finish the regular season with three-consecutive road games. Next week the Cardinal will wrap up MPSF play with games at Oregon and at UC Davis. Stanford's final game will be in Chicago against undefeated No. 2 Northwestern.