May 10, 2013
EVANSTON, Ill. - The Stanford women's lacrosse team earned its biggest victory in program history Friday night as it defeated Notre Dame, 8-7, to claim its first NCAA Tournament win.
Hannah Farr scored the game-winning goal on a free-position shot with four seconds remaining to lift Stanford to victory. Farr finished the game with two goals, a ground ball and a draw control.
With the victory, Stanford (14-5) advances to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and will face second-seeded Northwestern (17-2) on Sunday at 11 a.m. (PT).
"It's awesome to be able to advance in the NCAA Tournament," head coach Amy Bokker said. "We set our goals high this season and it's something we're really proud of. We feel fortunate to be able to compete against Northwestern on Sunday."
Lucy Dikeou led Stanford with three goals, followed by Farr and Julia Burns who tallied two apiece, and Anna Kim with one.
Stanford had a terrific defensive game holding Notre Dame (12-5) to two goals in the first half for the second time this season. Lyndsey Munoz was strong in goal and made six saves, while Megan Lerner caused a team-best two turnovers and claimed two draw controls.
Lerner made a crucial interception with 3:07 to play as Notre Dame held a 7-6 lead and was threatening in Stanford's zone. Notre Dame's Stephanie Toy tried to feed a pass to the middle of the goal but Lerner stepped up and intercepted the pass cleanly.
Stanford was able to advance the ball into Notre Dame's territory, and after a Cardinal timeout, Dikeou notched her third goal of night to knot the score at 7-7.
Lerner made perhaps an equally important play on the ensuing draw control, claiming her second of the game to give Stanford the final possession of the match - leading to Farr's game-winner.
"She's a really tough competitor overall," Bokker said of Lerner. "When it was on the line, she wasn't afraid to go for it. We really appreciate how hard she competes every day. She's like, `see ball, get ball' and she's one of those players you can rely on to get it when it's loose."
The game was a defensive battle for most of the game as both Stanford and Notre Dame held the other team scoreless for different lengthy stretches of the match.
After conceding the first goal of the match to Notre Dame's Caitlin Gargan at 28:47, Stanford went on a 3-0 scoring run to take an early 3-1 lead. Farr got the Cardinal on the board at 26:01, followed by a goal by Kim at 24:45. Dikeou capped the streak after finding the net with 16:48 to play in the first half.
Stanford kept Notre Dame off the board for a span of 16:54, until Lindsay Powell tallied the Fighting Irish's second goal of the game.
The Cardinal defense continued to shutdown Notre Dame in the second half as it allowed just one goal in the first 18:45. Stanford got two goals during that stretch - first from Dikeou then Burns.
However, Stanford ran into a bit of adversity as Notre Dame went on a 4-0 scoring run in a 6:08 span to take a 7-6 lead. The Irish also held Stanford scoreless for 15:15 following Burns' goal.
Facing a similar situation as the previous meeting between the two teams, Stanford continued to battle and was sparked offensively in the final two minutes by Lerner's defensive interception and draw control that led to the final two scores.
Stanford, now 1-3 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, will look to carry its momentum into Sunday's match against Northwestern.
Live stats and a free webcast will be provided via gostanford.com.