STANFORD, Calif. – No. 1 Stanford scored three second-half goals in an eight minute span to secure a convincing 3-0 Pac-12-opening victory against Oregon on Saturday night.
Tegan McGrady and Averie Collins scored their first goals of the season, while Jordan DiBiasi added to her team-high total scoring her sixth of the year.
"It was a great team performance tonight," said head coach Paul Ratcliffe. "It's never easy to win 3-0 in the Pac-12, so it was a great accomplishment to start conference play."
The Cardinal (8-0-1, 1-0 Pac-12) earned its fourth shutout of the season, limiting the Ducks (6-3-1, 0-1 Pac-12) to six shots and two corner kicks.
It was an impressive showing from Stanford's defense which was under constant pressure from Oregon's forwards who pressed high and often throughout the game. Maddie Bauer and Alana Cook continued their dominance in the center of the defense, while McGrady and Goad did well out wide to shut down the Ducks' attack and get involved in the offense.
Jane Campbell made three saves in goal to earn her second shutout of the season and 32nd of her career. She moves into sole possession of third place on Stanford's all-time shutout list.
Andi Sullivan and Tierna Davidson had excellent games in the midfield. The duo played well in the first half and made quality adjustments at halftime to adapt to Oregon's pressure.
Davidson took on the primary holding midfielder position in the second half, allowing Sullivan to be more aggressive offensively. The adjustment paid off as Sullivan's offensive presence and Davidson's defense opened up the midfield and helped create more scoring opportunities for the Cardinal.
"Tierna is a talented player with a great work ethic," said Ratcliffe. "She's the real deal and has been extraordinary for us all year. She was a major catalyst in there for us."
Goals?
— Stanford Soccer (@StanfordWSoccer) September 25, 2016
Here's all three of them from tonight's victory. #GoStanford https://t.co/i2ejYRJ4ay
Highlights from Stanford's 3-0 victory.
After a scoreless first half, McGrady scored her first goal of the season with a perfectly placed left-footed shot from the top of the left corner of the penalty box. Her shot sailed over the goalkeeper's head and into the top right corner of the goal.
DiBiasi doubled Stanford's lead less than three minutes later with her sixth goal of the season. Kyra Carusa laid off a pass toward the right corner flag that Collins ran onto and sent a one-touch cross to the head of DiBiasi near the penalty kick spot.
Collins registered a goal of her own in the 72nd minute to provide an exclamation point on the eight-minute scoring sequence. Sullivan sent in a free kick from just inside the halfline of the offensive zone. Collins fought through a sea of defenders to head in her first goal of the year.
Stanford will look to continue its momentum next weekend when it wraps up its nine-game homestand against Washington State (Sept. 29, 7 p.m. PT) and Washington (Oct. 2, 2 p.m.).Cardinal Notes
- Stanford improves to 19-0-1 against Oregon all-time. Oregon and Colorado are the only Pac-12 schools to have never beaten the Cardinal.
- Stanford has not lost a Pac-12 opener since 2000. The Cardinal improved to 13-0-3 in conference openers since 2001. Under head coach Paul Ratcliffe, who took over as coach in 2003, Stanford is 11-0-3 in Pac-10/Pac-12 openers.
- Jordan DiBiasi scored her sixth goal of the season, eclipsing her total from last season as a freshman (5).
- Jane Campbell earned her 32nd career shutouts and is now third all-time in Stanford history.
- Stanford holds advantages against opponents in goals (22-6), shots (170-58), shots on goal (74-27) and corner kicks (66-21).