Oct. 21, 2011
STANFORD, Calif.- No. 9 Stanford posted its third straight win and fourth shutout of the year on Friday night, routing UC Davis 5-0 at the Varsity Turf to close out conference play with an undefeated record.
Playing its only match of the week, Stanford (13-2, 6-0 NorPac) completed a season sweep of UC Davis (3-10, 1-3 NorPac), after also defeating the Aggies 3-1 back on Sept. 25.
The Cardinal received goals from five different players, and thoroughly dominated the game with a commanding advantage 21-2 shot edge, including a 12-0 cushion over the final 35 minutes.
Becky Dru opened the scoring with her team-leading 13th goal in the 11th minute, scoring unassisted following a penalty corner. Dru has now scored 13 goals in each of her first three seasons, giving her 39 for her career.
Courtney Haldeman found the cage right before intermission, putting Stanford in front 2-0 with a quick shot that beat UC Davis keeper Conley Craven thanks to an assist from Hope Burke.
In the 42nd minute, Alex McCawley increased Stanford's lead to 3-0 with a hard, driving shot from the top of the circle.
Kasey Quon's first career goal at the 56:24 mark pushed the Cardinal lead to 4-0, beating Craven with a low shot to the post following an assist from McCawley near a scrum in front of the cage.
Kelsey Lloyd rounded out the scoring in the 68th minute, scoring on an assist from Shannon Herold after a well-executed misdirection sequence following a penalty corner.
Dru fired off a game-best four shots, with Stephanie Byrne and McCawley adding three apiece.
Stanford held a slim 5-3 advantage in penalty corners.
The final week of the regular season features an important two-game road swing for Stanford, which will face Michigan State (Fri., Oct. 28 - 12 p.m.) and Michigan (Sun., Oct. 30 - 9 a.m.) before hosting the NorPac Championship on Nov. 3-5.
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NOTES: Stephanie Byrne, Devon Holman, Katie Mitchell and Ale Moss were honored in a pregame Senior Night ceremony ... With a minimum of five games remaining in the season, Stanford is within striking distance of the school record for victories (17) established in 2009 ... The Cardinal has won eight consecutive home games, with its last loss coming on Sept. 19, 2010 in a 2-1 setback against California ... Stanford has scored at least three goals in all but two games this year (a 4-2 loss at Connecticut on Aug. 28, a 1-0 victory over Robert Morris on Oct. 30) ... The Cardinal has secured the West Division's No. 1 seed for the NorPac Championship and will open play against an undetermined opponent on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 1:30 p.m. ... Stanford has doubled up its opponents in goals at 52-26, and owns a 267-127 edge in shot attempts ... Becky Dru is bidding to become Stanford's leading goal scorer in back-to-back seasons for the first time since Jess Zutz accomplished the feat in 2006 and 2007 ... Alex McCawley continues to make a strong bid for the NorPac Rookie of the Year award, as she has totaled five goals, four assists, 14 points and 39 shots in 15 games.