STANFORD, Calif. – No. 11 Stanford will take on Michigan and Pacific in its final homestand of the season, looking to create momentum heading into the final week of play and the postseason.
The Cardinal (11-4, 3-1 NorPac) opens the weekend slate Friday at 2 p.m. against Michigan (9-6, 2-2 Big Ten) in a match that will be televised live on the Pac-12 Network. Stanford will conclude its home schedule on Monday at 7 p.m., taking on Pacific (4-10, 2-2 NorPac). Monday’s match will be Senior Night and will feature a pregame recognition of the Cardinal’s four seniors.
Stanford went 1-1 this past weekend on its cross-country trip to North Carolina. The Cardinal defeated No. 14 Wake Forest 1-0 in overtime on a goal by freshman Fran Tew and recorded its third consecutive shutout. Tew was named the NorPac West Division Rookie of the Week for her clutch performance.
Stanford held No. 8 Duke scoreless for 58 minutes before the Blue Devils broke through in the 59th minute and added an empty-net goal with 20 seconds remaining in regulation to defeat Stanford 2-0.
The 2-0 decision at Duke was a bit of a role reversal for the Cardinal, which had not been held scoreless in any contest and had shut out seven of 14 opponents entering the match. The Blue Devils’ goal at 58:42 ended Stanford’s shutout streak, which spanned four games, at 276:59.
While the Cardinal’s streak of almost 277 minutes without allowing a goal is impressive, it’s not even the longest scoreless streak of the year. Stanford held opponents scoreless for a span of 366:44 from Sept. 6-28, in a streak that spanned six games and included four consecutive shutouts.
Stanford is tied for the second-most shutouts in the NCAA with seven.
Much of Stanford’s defensive success can be attributed to a strong backline anchored by Kelsey Harbin and goalkeeper Dulcie Davies. Harbin has provided stability for the Cardinal defense throughout the year and was named the NorPac West Division Defensive Player of the Week for her shutdown effort this past weekend.
Davies has been consistent in net for the Cardinal and ranks second in the NCAA with a 0.91 GAA and .829 save percentage. Davies’ shutout at Wake Forest was her seventh of the year, matching her total from last season.
Stanford defeated Michigan 3-0 in the most recent matchup on Oct. 30, 2011, at Ann Arbor, Mich. Hope Burke, Shannon Herold and Becky Dru recorded goals for the Cardinal in a win that snapped a six-game losing streak against the Wolverines.
Michigan was victorious in its only contest last weekend, defeating rival Ohio State 2-1 in overtime. The Wolverines are led by Rachael Mack with 39 points on 17 goals and 5 assists, followed by Leslie Smith (21, 6-9) and Ainsley McCallister (17, 5-7). Haley Jones has played a majority of the minutes in goal and holds a 2.07 GAA and .631 save percentage.
The Cardinal earned a convincing 6-1 victory over Pacific in the last meeting on Oct. 4 at Stanford. Six players scored a goal and Stanford stretched its winning streak over the Tigers to 14.
Pacific won its only game last weekend, defeating UC Davis 4-2 at a game played in a neutral –site game at Berkeley, Calif. Emily Tregoning leads Pacific with 17 points on seven goals and three assists, followed by Nicole Laskosky (8, 2-4) and Melissa Maultsby (7, 3-1).
Live stats will be available for both games via gostanford.com.
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