STANFORD, Calif. - Honoring its four seniors before kickoff, No. 5 Stanford battled to a hard-fought 3-3 draw with No. 1 Washington on Sunday afternoon. Shane de Flores, Connor Evans, and Keegan Hughes each tallied a goal against Stanford's conference rival.
Before the match, Stanford recognized its four seniors, Matt Frank, Keegan Tingey, Cam Cilley, and Keegan Hughes for their commitment and hard work to both their athletic goals and their academic pursuits during their careers on The Farm.
"What a great group of human beings and exceptional soccer players" said The Knowles Family Director of Men's Soccer Jeremy Gunn. "We talk about who we want the man to be and who we want to be the player, and they're a wonderful epitome of what we hope to see in this program."
"I'm so very exited that they're doing what they do and what they love, and they're such amazing brothers," added Gunn. "When we recruit, we hope to promise hard work and excitement, and I think they're getting lots of both right now."
The match against Washington marked Stanford's sixth game this season recording three goals or more. Shane de Flores got the action started, tallying the first goal of the game and his sixth of the year to lead all Cardinal scorers.
Cam Cilley worked the ball into an attacking position for Stanford before laying it off to Carlo Agostinelli who fired in a shot that was saved. Shane de Flores was the first to pounce on the rebound, however, putting the Cardinal up 1-0 in the 21st minute.
Stanford's 1-0 lead only lasted two minutes, however. In the 23rd minute, Washington was given and converted a penalty to tie the match.
"You have to live with decisions in soccer," added Gunn. "But really felt hard done by some of the critical decisions today."
Despite the goal the other direction, Stanford kept the pressure on, searching for another goal to regain the lead. In the 26th minute, Connor Evans found the back of the net for the first time in his career to restore Stanford's advantage.
Cam Cilley was once again involved in the buildup of the play, finding Jackson Kiil in an attacking position. Kiil drew the defenders to him and laid the ball off perfectly for Evans who pinpointed the bottom corner of the goal.
"I'm so proud of the way the team played today," said Gunn. "I thought we absolutely were on the front foot throughout the course of the game and I felt we were the better team."
Stanford held its lead for 10 minutes, but Washington answered again. In the 35th minute, the Huskies converted from a free kick, knotting the game up at two. The match remained tied at two heading into the halftime break.
In the second half, the match remained just as intense with a hard-fought effort by both teams. Washington would earn its first lead of the match in the 70th minute.
Not to be outdone on senior day, Keegan Hughes answered for the Cardinal in the 79th minute to tie the match for a third time at 3-3. He headed home a corner from Carlo Agostinelli to bring the game level again.
"I'm so proud of how we competed and how composed we were on the ball," said Gunn. "I'm just so proud of the great soccer we played today."
The match would end 3-3, with each team coming from a goal down to tie and take the lead at some point during the contest. 2,156 fans packed Cagan stadium for the contest, the 11th-largest crowd ever for a men's soccer game in Cagan Stadium.
Stanford will return to action for the final regular season home match on Monday, November 7 against Pacific at 5:30 p.m.