ANN ARBOR, Mich. - No. 1 Stanford turned up its second-half defensive pressure, defeating No. 4 UCLA 10-7 in a highly-competitive semifinal on Saturday afternoon at the NCAA Championship.
Tied 5-5 midway through the third period, Stanford responded by scoring four of the next five goals over a four-minute stretch while also holding UCLA scoreless for a near seven-minute span in the fourth period.
Aria Fischer and Makenzie Fischer scored three goals apiece while Ryann Neushul added two goals and three assists, as the Cardinal never trailed and beat the Bruins for the fourth time this season.
The nation's only program to have participated at every NCAA Championship since the event's inception in 2001, Stanford (24-2, 5-1 MPSF) has advanced to 11 of the last 12 NCAA finals and will face USC in Sunday's title match at 1 p.m. PT on ESPNU.
The Cardinal, which is seeking its eighth NCAA title in school history and first since defeating USC in 2019, also captured national championships in 2017, 2015, 2014, 2012, 2011 and 2002.
Stanford has won 10 in a row for the second time this season, holding every opponent during this recent stretch to less than 10 goals. The Cardinal also improved to 16-0 away from home this season (6-0 away, 10-0 neutral).
Both teams attempted 29 shots, with UCLA limited to 3-of-12 on the power play while Stanford finished 1-of-5. The Cardinal also missed two penalty shots.
Stanford led all the way in a low-scoring first half, stretching it to 5-2 after a Sophie Wallace goal with 1:38 remaining. However, UCLA scored twice in the next 90 seconds to trail only 5-4 at halftime.
UCLA evened the game at 5-5 but Neushul and Jewel Romer scored twice to give Stanford a 7-5 lead entering the third period.
Back-to-back goals from Makenzie Fischer made it 9-6 and UCLA was unable to find the cage again until 43 seconds left in regulation.
Maya Avital made five saves in goal and ranked fifth on the Cardinal's all-time single-season list with 201.
Stanford Goals: Aria Fischer (3), Makenzie Fischer (3), Ryann Neushul (2), Jewel Roemer (1), Sophie Wallace (1)