STANFORD, Calif. – Opening the week with an afternoon tilt, No. 25 Stanford field hockey dropped a battle to No. 10 Liberty, 5-1, on Monday at the Varsity Turf.
Haley Mossmer scored her first career goal in the opening quarter, while Rose Winter picked up her first assist this season, and the fifth of her career. Stanford was credited seven defensive saves despite not playing a goalkeeper, with five coming from freshman Cara Sambeth.
"I'm so impressed with our improvements," said head coach Roz Ellis. "Everyone was communicating, we trapped it in the zone; we wanted to improve on our outletting structure, and we worked the ball in and out really well. There's still a lot to build on, but again it's the second game, and if you keep climbing each game it will be a fantastic year to build on the foundation.
Liberty struck first on the penalty corner 2:23 into the opening frame, but the Cardinal responded to tie the bout four minutes later after the score from Mossmer. Winter inserted the ball with a pass to Mossmer on the right side, who turned and fired a shot into the bottom left corner.
The Flames added a pair of scores late in the second quarter to take a 3-1 lead into the half.
Stanford fired three of its six shots in the fourth quarter, including a shot from Winter after a penalty corner that required a save by the Flames. Liberty, however, notched a pair of second half goals to walk away with the 5-1 decision.
"Our players' pride has already bled into my heart – I can't believe how hard they are working every second of the game," continued Ellis. "This isn't just let's get through this year, this is let's build every day and start the foundation of the dynasty we are creating."
Stanford returns to action on Monday, Sept. 6 for an 11 a.m. contest with Dartmouth. The game will be broadcast on Pac-12 Insider.