STANFORD, Calif. - No. 21 Stanford outlasted William & Mary 4-3 in a shootout on Monday afternoon in an entertaining nonconference matchup at the Varsity Turf.
In a battle of two top-30 RPI programs, Stanford (10-4, 2-0 America East) erased deficits of 2-0 and 3-2, tying the game at 3-3 in the 50th minute after Jessica Welch found the cage with an assist from Emma Christus.
Two scoreless overtime periods later, the Cardinal prevailed in the shootout, with Corinne Zanolli and Fenella Scutt converting goals while Kelsey Bing turned away all four William & Mary opportunities.
"It was a hard-fought game," said head coach Tara Danielson. "William & Mary is an experienced team. When they came out and struck twice, it put us on our heels right away. It was great to see our young team battle back. I felt like we pressed very well. This team, although young, was really gritty today. They showed a lot of character. I was really excited to see them fight for each other. Kelsey performed exactly as I would expect from one of the top goal keepers in the country. She played out of her mind."
Stanford, which has won 10 of its last 11 overall, quickly fell behind 2-0 after Casey Goodwin scored twice in the first seven minutes.
The Cardinal got one back at the 23:29 mark, with Molly Redgrove scoring off a penalty corner following assists from Frances Carstens and Kennedy Schumacher.
The equalizer came five minutes later when Corinne Zanolli scored her 19th goal of the season thanks to an assist from Welch. Zanolli's 19 goals rank third in the country.
William & Mary (7-5, 3-0 CAA) responded with a goal right before halftime to take a 3-2 lead into the break.
Welch's second goal of the season accounted for the only scoring in the second period.
Stanford and William & Mary finished with 12 shots apiece while the Cardinal recorded seven of the game's 10 penalty corners.
Bing came up with seven saves in goal.
Stanford returns to action on Friday, Oct. 19, visiting Pacific for a 3 p.m. contest.