CORVALLIS, Ore. - No. 5 Stanford tied with Oregon State on Sunday afternoon, 2-2. Stanford moves to 6-1-4 and 1-1-3 in Pac-12 play while the Beavers move to 4-3-3 and 1-1-2 in conference games.
"Another exciting Pac-12 game," said The Knowles Family Director of Men's Soccer Jeremy Gunn. "I was very pleased with our performance, I thought we had great spells in the game where we were looking really positive."
The match began even on both ends with stout defenses and a handful of chances for each team during the opening 20 minutes. Matt Frank continued his stellar play on the year, making a spectacular save in the 24th minute to deny a point blank shot from the Beavers and keep the match scoreless.
"We created some good chances in the first half and I honestly felt we were unfortunate to not be given a penalty because it looked like we really were in on goal in a great shooting position when Liam Doyle was brought down," explained Gunn. "Against a very good opponent like Oregon State, I felt that our team was solid defensively and was creating good chances here and there."
The two teams entered the locker rooms for halftime in a closely contested match. During the first 45 minutes, Stanford had four total shots, three on target compared to the Beavers five total shots and one on goal.
The second half began with a bang, as Stanford jumped in front in the second half, thanks to a header goal from Mark Fisher, his first of the season. He placed home Fletcher Bank's inch-perfect corner kick cross to put the Cardinal in front, 1-0.
"We got the go-ahead goal which was exciting," said Gunn. "But we were disappointed to give away the equalizer because at that point of the game, we felt like we were in a really strong position and fairly comfortable."
Oregon State was able to get a hold on the game ten minutes later, however, equalizing in the 61st minute. The Beavers' attack found the back of the net again in the 81st minute to take the lead with nine minutes remaining.
"After having given that up, Oregon State scored an absolute screamer of a strike, an unbelievable hit from distance," added Gunn. "At that point, we've gone from 1-0 up to 2-1 down, with not much time on the clock."
Cam Cilley was able to pull Stanford back level four minutes later in the 85th. Cilley passed to Carlo Agostinelli in the Oregon State penalty box, who tapped a great setup right back to Cilley. The senior slotted it home under the keeper for his second goal in three games.
"I was just so proud of how the team kept playing, kept their composure, and kept looking for openings," said Gunn. "We scored the equalizing goal after a great period of pressure and then we were absolutely finishing the game strong where we were really looking dangerous."
The two teams were even throughout the match as the Cardinal tallied 10 shots and four corners compared to the Beavers' 11 shots and five corners.
"I think the players are a little frustrated with the tie, but overall I'm very pleased with the performance and we all know we have different areas where we can continue to grow and improve," explained Gunn. "When you consider the position we were in, I'm very pleased with the response from the players, the work rate, and the way we competed."
Stanford returns to action on October 15 for a break in conference play, taking on Saint Mary's College in Moraga California. The match will begin at 1 p.m. on Saturday.