What's Next
The No. 3 Stanford men’s soccer team (8-1-0, 1-0-0) begins its home conference schedule this weekend when it hosts No. 17 Washington (5-2-3, 1-1-0) on Friday, October 9 (8 p.m.) and No. 16 Oregon State (7-3-0, 2-0-0) on Sunday, October 11 (1 p.m.).
Both matches will be televised on Pac-12 Networks. Christian Miles and Christopher Sullivan have the call on Friday while JB Long will hop into the booth to handle play-by-play alongside Sullivan on Sunday.
History vs. Opponents
Stanford is 17-32-4 in 53 all-time meetings with the Huskies dating back to 1974. The Cardinal beat the No. 3 Huskies in the teams’ last match on November 7, 2014, 2-0, behind goals from Zach Batteer (18’) and Jordan Morris (48’). That was Stanford’s first point against Washington since November 1, 2009 (0-0) and first win since November 7, 2008 (4-2).
The Cardinal is 30-6-5 all-time against the Beavers in a series dating back to 1988, 10-1-3 in the past 14 and 5-0-1 under Jeremy Gunn. The Cardinal hasn’t dropped a result to OSU since a 1-0 loss in Corvallis on Oct. 23, 2011.
| Stanford Against Oregon State Under Gunn | |
| Date | Result |
| November 9, 2014 at Stanford | W, 2-1 |
| October 2, 2014 at Oregon State | W, 1-0 |
| November 10, 2013 at Oregon State | W, 1-0 (OT) |
| October 6, 2013 at Stanford | W, 2-1 |
| October 18, 2012 at Stanford | W, 3-2 |
| October 12, 2012 at Oregon State | T, 2-2 (2OT) |
On a Roll
For the second consecutive season, Stanford has responded to a loss in its opener with an impressive string of victories. Last year’s squad racked up seven wins in a row, while this year’s group has pushed that streak to eight.
It’s the longest run for the Cardinal since it won nine consecutive matches to open up the 2001 season. Stanford’s stretch is the second-longest active streak in the nation (Creighton - 11).
| National Win Streaks (Active) | |
| Team | Wins |
| No. 1 Creighton | 11 |
| No. 3 Stanford | 8 |
| No. 2 North Carolina | 7 |
| No. 19 Seattle | 7 |
| Stanford Win Streaks | |
| Year(s) | Wins |
| 1996-97 | 14 |
| 2001 | 9 |
| 1980-81 | 9 |
| 2015 | 8 |
| 2014 | 7 |
| 2002 | 7 |
| 2000 | 7 |
| 1978 | 7 |
More Runs
The Cardinal has also won five straight conference matches dating back to last season, a streak which is tied for third in the NCAA. Stanford is 6-0-3 in its last nine Pac-12 games.
In its last 19 matches on The Farm, the Cardinal is 14-1-4. Over that time, Stanford has outscored its opponents at home, 33-11, and not allowed more than one goal in any of the 19 contests.
Stanford has gotten off to strong starts each of the last three seasons. Since 2013, the Cardinal is 18-3-1 in the months of August and September, including an 13-1-1 mark at Cagan Stadium.
It's in the Rankings
Stanford currently sits at No. 3 in the NSCAA Top 25 and has been in the top five for each of the past four weeks. It’s the Cardinal’s first four-week stretch among the nation’s top five since 2001-02. Beginning on September 10, 2001, Stanford held on to a top-five ranking for 18 consecutive polls, including six weeks at No. 1.
| Stanford Week-by-Week Rankings (NSCAA) | |
| Week | Rank |
| Preseason | No. 8 |
| September 1 | No. 16 |
| September 8 | No. 13 |
| September 15 | No. 4 |
| September 22 | No. 3 |
| September 29 | No. 3 |
| October 6 | No. 3 |
The Cardinal is No. 17, and tops in the Pac-12, in the official RPI released by the NCAA on Monday. Stanford finished fourth in RPI a season ago, its best in the final report of a season since ending 2002 No. 3 using the NCAA’s official formula.
It's in the Defense
The Cardinal’s defense is among the best in the country early in 2015. Stanford is seventh in the nation in goals against average (0.54) and 14th in shutout percentage (0.56). Andrew Epstein’s 0.546 goals against average leads the Pac-12 and is 12th in the NCAA.
Heck of a save in the early going from one of the nation's best. Watch now on @Pac12Networks. #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/aqbtQczOvu
— StanfordMen'sSoccer (@StanfordMSoccer) October 4, 2015
Stanford has already posted five shutouts this season. Earlier this year, the Cardinal put together a shutout streak of 469:38, the program’s longest since 2007 (575:51).
The Cardinal’s domination of possession has taken significant pressure off its back four and goalkeeper. Epstein has only been called upon to make 16 saves this season, an average of 1.78 which is the second-lowest in college soccer. Denver has made 19 saves in 11 games (1.73 per game).
| Nation's Top Defenses | ||
| Team | GAA | Saves Per Game |
| Coastal Carolina | 0.28 | 4.29 |
| Western Michigan | 0.32 | 2.33 |
| Creighton | 0.36 | 1.82 |
| St. Francis Brooklyn | 0.37 | 2.90 |
| Lafayette | 0.45 | 3.20 |
| Wake Forest | 0.54 | 2.82 |
| Stanford | 0.54 | 1.78 |
| Valparaiso | 0.55 | 2.90 |
| Seattle | 0.55 | 2.36 |
| High Point | 0.55 | 4.30 |
Stanford has allowed only five goals through its first nine matches, its stingiest defensive start to a season since it only let in five over the same span in 2004.
Always Willing to Help
Stanford is 35th nationally in assists per game (1.57) thanks largely to Corey Baird and Eric Verso. Baird has six total assists and is fourth in the country in average (0.67) while Verso has four overall and is 46th in the NCAA in average (0.44). Baird has at least one in five of the Cardinal’s last six matches.
Baird has assisted on each of fellow sophomore Foster Langsdorf's three goals this season, all of which have been game winners.
Morris Magic
Stanford’s dynamic striker will miss his seventh and eighth matches over the past two seasons this weekend while the junior is helping the United States qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The U.S. U-23’s swept through group play at the 2015 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship.
Morris has scored three goals in three games, tied for best on the team aside fellow forward Jerome Kiesewetter, and has scored six total for the U.S. U-23 team this year. A win against either Mexico or Honduras on October 10 will send the USA through to Rio.
Stanford is 6-0-1 in the matches Morris has missed due to responsibilities with U.S. Soccer.
Goal USA - No.9 Jordan MORRIS - USA 3-0 PAN #CMOQ2015 #CONCACAF @ussoccer @Fepafut http://t.co/ZYM4SrGi75
— CONCACAF (@CONCACAF) October 7, 2015
Morris, a Type 1 diabetic, is also lending his support to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s (JDRF) “T1D Looks Like Me Campaign” for National Diabetes Awareness Month (NDAM) in November. Among a number of different pieces to the awareness push, Morris will be featured in a Times Square display ad the first week of the month.
Using Their Heads
Stanford isn’t dominating just on the pitch. The Cardinal was honored with the NSCAA Team Academic Award on September 23 and the program’s APR (996) is No. 1 among the nation’s five top-ranked teams.
#3 in the D1 MSO poll + @NCAA APR award + @NSCAACollege GPA award = @StanfordMSoccer. http://t.co/b9P3QPNUS0 pic.twitter.com/QSmRwjfvFf
— NCAA Research (@NCAAResearch) September 30, 2015
On September 15, the Cardinal took advantage of its positioning in a global center for innovation and tech development and visited Facebook, meeting with staffers and getting a tour of campus.
Facebook VisitRight in our backyard »
Posted by Stanford Men's Soccer on Monday, September 21, 2015