STANFORD, Calif. -- Lo'eau LaBonta scored on a first-half rebound of her own saved penalty kick to send Stanford into the NCAA women's soccer quarterfinals with a 1-0 victory over Washington on Sunday.
No. 3-ranked Stanford (20-1-2), the No. 1 seed in its 16-team regional, plays host to No. 10-ranked Florida (17-4-1), a 2-1 winner over Texas Tech, on Friday at 7 p.m. for a berth in the College Cup. The Gators are the No. 2 seed.
LaBonta scored her team-leading 13th goal of the season at 42:20 just after Ryan Walker-Hartshorn was fouled from behind as she awaited a high pass from Laura Liedle in the box. LaBonta's penalty was blocked by Megan Kufeld, but LaBonta charged the ball and punched in the rebound from point-blank range.
It was the second consecutive match that Stanford won 1-0 on a goal by LaBonta off a penalty. Her PK beat Arkansas in the second round, and her overtime PK beat Florida, 1-0, on Sept. 12.
“It was a solid performance,” Stanford coach Paul Ratcliffe said. “I’m really proud of them. I wish we could have scored another goal to create a separation, but when you get to this stage, you’ve got to take any goal you can get.”
Stanford outshot the Huskies, 20-4, and two other particularly strong chances. In the first half, Haley Rosen hit the crossbar and in the second half a beautiful buildup let to a centering pass from Chioma Ubogagu to an open Walker-Hartshorn, but the shot went high.
“I’m all about creating opportunities and we’re creating amazing opportunities,” said Ratcliffe, whose team has outscored its three NCAA opponents by a combined, 77-15. “My hope is that we’re building up the goals for later on.”
In turn, Washington’s Kate Bennett fired a long-range shot that dipped and required a leaping tip into the crossbar by Stanford goalkeeper Jane Campbell, who earned her 14th shutout, placing her in a tie for second for most shutouts in a season for a Cardinal goalkeeper.
Central defenders Kendall Romine and Maddie Bauer were particular adept in the air, winning just about every 50-50 ball within reach. Stanford earned its 17th shutout of the season, two away from matching the school record.
“Every single line has to stay on point and together, and we really work on making sure we always have someone covering and that someone will be there in support,” Romine said. “As long as we’re shifting as a team, no one can get through us.”
Stanford advances to the quarterfinals for the sixth time in the past seven years, but it does surpass the Cardinal's showing in last year's tournament, when it was eliminated by eventual champion UCLA in the third round.
However, that loss didn’t affect Stanford’s home NCAA winning streak, which now numbers 24 in a row.
“It’s definitely frustrating when you can’t finish, but at the end of the day, we got the one,” LaBonta said. “We’re definitely satisfied with that.”
* * *
| Washington | 0 | 0 | -- | 0 |
| Stanford | 1 | 0 | -- | 1 |
Scoring: Stanford -- Lo'eau LaBonta (unassisted), 42:20.
Records: Stanford 20-1-2, Washington 14-7-2.