STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford field hockey got its season started in exciting fashion, as Lynn Vanderstichele scored the game-winning goal in overtime to give Stanford a 2-1 win over Holy Cross.
Vanderstichele joined classmate Rose Winter on the scoresheet, as Winter scored the opening goal and assisted Vanderstichele's tally. A third senior, Fenella Scutt, also dished an assist in the contest. Freshman Daisy Ford got the win in goal, making one save over 70 minutes.
The Cardinal outshot the Crusaders on the afternoon by a 15-6 margin, while also earning seven penalty corners.
"I think today was about getting the nerves off our back. Everybody was so excited for the first game, we built a lot of energy coming up to it," said head coach Roz Ellis. "I'm really happy with us fighting through the ebbs and flows of the game, we fought through it and our players know they can still perform even better."
Stanford fired the first four shots of the game in the opening period, with Scutt finding Winter with a pass down the center at the 12 minute mark. Winter carried the ball forward before finding the lower corner of the cage with a reverse shot. The goal stood as the only score of the opening half, as the home team took a 1-0 lead into the intermission.
The Cardinal continued to increase the pressure in the second half, but the Crusaders found the equalizing goal with no time remaining in the third quarter, leveling the bout heading into the fourth quarter. Stanford outshot Holy Cross 5-0 in the fourth, but the game was sent to overtime.
Just 6:19 into the first overtime, Vanderstichele held off an opponent inside the arc before unleashing a powerful shot into the back of the goal. The score was her first this season and the ninth of her career, as well as her first-career game-winning goal.
"Lynn wanted to end the game – we could tell," continued Ellis. "She was really looking to create space above the ball, and as soon as I saw her backswing I knew it was going in. You can see the power behind her shot and just know it's going to find its way in."
Stanford hits the road for the first time, traveling to fourth-ranked Maryland on Monday at noon PT. The action will air on the Big Ten Network.