Sept. 24, 2011
STANFORD, Calif. - Ideally, every sporting event should provide one lasting moment - a memory or feeling that will linger after the contest is complete.
Stanford's 7-0 victory over Arizona in a Pac-12 women's soccer opener Saturday night was certainly many things to many people, especially to the six Cardinal players who shared in the scoring.
But the singular moment lasted as long as it took for Kendall Romine's 30-yard chip to float through the air and ripple the net in the most spectacular score of the match. But there were plenty of others.
Marjani Hing-Glover scored twice within 90 seconds to cap off the scoring and the Cardinal defense earned its fourth consecutive shutout to highlight the match, played before 1,756 at Cagan Stadium.
Sydney Payne scored the first goal by volleying in a rebound of Chioma Ubogagu's shot off the post in the 11th minute, but the Cardinal was unable to shake Arizona (0-8-1, 0-1) despite outshooting the Wildcats, 20-0, in the first half.
It wasn't until Taylor McCann's nifty finish to a three-player combination among Teresa Noyola and Hing-Glover in the 45th minute that Stanford began to put the match away.
"It took us a while to score," Ratcliffe said. "That's a credit to Arizona."
Stanford substituted often, but continued to push for goals until the final whistle, with Hing-Glover capping her five-point night with goals at 71:33 and 72:55 for her first collegiate multi-goal performance.
Seniors Kristy Zurmuhlen and Lindsay Taylor also scored for Stanford. Taylor, who also had an assist, leads the team with seven goals. And Zurmuhlen scored her second goal in three matches, after going two seasons without any at all.
"You've got to cherish every moment your on the field," Ratcliffe said about the mentality that he wants to see throughout the match no matter the score.
Romine's shot seemed harmless at first. But as the ball kept traveling, it looked ever more dangerous, finally sneaking into the upper left corner. It was the first collegiate goal for the redshirt freshman central defender and her first goal of any kind since club ball in 2009, after injuries sidelined her the past two years.
"No one stepped forward to defend me so I saw the space and took the shot," Romine said. "I was thrilled and surprised."
Romine became the 11th Stanford player to score this season for a team that has scored 34 goals.
Also Saturday:
• Stanford extended its conference winning streak to 21.
• Its home winning streak to 41.
• Its regular-season unbeaten streak to 52.
• And its conference-opening unbeaten streak to 11.
In addition, Paul Ratcliffe earned his 197th career collegiate coaching victory and draws nearer to No. 200.
What will the lasting memories be of No. 198? The Cardinal will hope to find out when it plays at Washington State and Washington next weekend.
-- David Kiefer, Stanford Athletics