STANFORD, Calif. – Finishing the exhibition portion of its schedule on Friday night, No. 5 Stanford logged a 1-0 shutout victory over visiting Pacific from Cagan Stadium.
The shutout was the second in as many matches for the Cardinal, coming on the heels of a 3-0 triumph over No. 11 Saint Mary's on Tuesday night.
"It was a really well-fought game," the Knowles Family Director of Men's Soccer Jeremy Gunn said after the match. "I thought that we definitely had the lion's share of the chances and positional situations."
The Cardinal controlled possession virtually the entire 90 minutes, and finished the match with a 17-3 advantage in shots.
Pacific goalkeeper Ethan Bandre managed to turn away a number of early chances for the Cardinal, but Stanford finally broke through in the 38th minute as senior Tanner Beason headed home a chance that originated from the second of seven Cardinal corner kicks on the night.
"As a group, I thought we defended really well and didn't give Pacific too much to look at," Gunn added. "Attacking wise, I think we created enough chances to win the game, so I think it was a fair result."
After allowing just two shots in the opening stanza, the Cardinal defense proved even more frugal in the second half, limiting Pacific to just one shot in the final 45 minutes of play to eventually secure the clean sheet.
"Everything is a work in progress this time of year, but we are excited about how we started the season," Gunn stated. "I think defensively we have a pretty good shape right now. It could improve a little bit here and there, but the attitude and the work rate are fantastic from everybody. On the attacking side, we've scored some great goals and we've had some good combinations in spurts. We are still working on our attacking game and looking to start to put the pieces together more and more as we move into the regular season."
With the preseason in the rearview mirror, Stanford opens its regular season with a trip to face Penn State on Aug. 30 and No. 3 Akron on Sept. 2 in a match that will air live on ESPN+.
