Will ReillyWill Reilly
Abbey Liao
Men's Soccer

Second Ranked Matchup

No. 3 Stanford heads back on the road to take on ACC foe No. 23 Notre Dame on Saturday

No. 3 Stanford at No. 23 Notre Dame

Tuesday, September 14 • 4:00 p.m. PT | ACCNX

UP NEXT » No. 3 Stanford takes on No. 23 Notre Dame on Saturday night in South Bend Indiana in the Cardinal’s second game against a ranked opponent this season. The match will be only the second time in history between Stanford and the Fighting Irish, with the first matchup ending in a 2-1 double overtime win for Notre Dame in 2016.

FOURTH WIN IN A ROW » Stanford took down UC Riverside 3-0 on Tuesday night for its fourth straight win. The Cardinal earned its second shutout this season and scored three or more goals for the fourth time this season. Zach Bohane netted the game-winning goal, while Palmer Bank and Duncan Jarvie each found the back of the net as well in the win.

TOP FIVE VICTORY » The Cardinal took down then-No. 2 Clemson 3-2 for the university’s first-ever win in an ACC competition last Friday. It was also Stanford’s first road game of the 2024 season and the team’s first ranked win of the season. Will Reilly equalized for Stanford from the penalty spot to knot the game at one in the sixth minute. An own goal following a dangerous attack by Stanford gave the Cardinal a 2-1 advantage before halftime. Then, Shane de Flores scored his fourth goal of the season and his second game winner in the 75th minute off assists from Jackson Kiil and Dylan Groeneveld. Clemson scored on a free kick to bring the game within one, but Stanford held on for its first conference win.

OWNING THE ACC » Stanford men’s soccer played in the first ACC matchup of any Cardinal sport in 2024-25, and it was a fitting result, dispatching No. 2 Clemson 3-2. Seven of the Cardinal’s 15 wins during its NCAA three-peat stretch from 2015-17 came against ACC opponents, including twice in the final.

FIRING ON ALL CYLINDERS » Over the last four games, the Cardinal has tallied 15 goals, averaging 3.75 goals per game. During Gunn’s tenure on The Farm, Stanford is 69-0-4 when scoring 3+ goals, including a 4-0 record during the 2024 season.

TOP RANKED WIN » Stanford’s victory over No. 2 Clemson was the team’s first win over a ranked foe this season. During his 13 seasons on The Farm, Jeremy Gunn has led the Cardinal to a 38-24-19 record against ranked opponents.

STANFORD IN THE RANKINGS  » The Cardinal moved to No. 3 in this week’s United Soccer Coaches rankings and to No. 3 in the TopDrawerSoccer rankings after the ranked victory over then-No. 2 Clemson.

NCAA STATS » The Cardinal has been among the most efficient teams in college soccer this season. Stanford currently ranks  second in total assists (19), second in total goals (17), third in goal differential (+12), third in total points (53), seventh in points per game (8.83), seventh in assists per game (3.17), and 13th in scoring offense (2.83).

TEAM FIRST MENTALITY » Stanford is home to plenty of offensive playmakers. Zach Bohane ranks 16th in the nation in total assists (3), 31st in shots on goal per game (1.67),  and 46th in shots per game (3.00). Shane de Flores is 15th in the NCAA in total goals (4) and 25th in total points (9). 14 players have already logged a point through five games, 10 of which have multiple points.

COMING UP CLUTCH » Shane de Flores has been an offensive force early for the Cardinal, tallying four goals, the third-most in the ACC. He has  two game-winners against Clemson and Cal State Fullerton, tied for the fourth-most in the NCAA and the top mark in the ACC.

CONFERENCE STATS » Stanford is the second-best scoring team in the ACC through three weeks, tallying 17 total goals for an average of 2.83 per game, trailing only Duke (22 goals, 4.40 average). The Cardinal is tied for seventh in total goals allowed (5). Zach Bohane ranks third in shots on goal per game (1.67) and seventh in assists per game (0.50). Shane de Flores is fourth in goals per game (0.67). The Cardinal’s 5-0 win over Cal State Fullerton netted 16 total points, the second-best point total for any team in the conference this season.

ACC IN THE RANKINGS » Seven ACC teams are ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, including three in the top 10. Both totals are the most of any conference: Stanford (3), Clemson (5), Pitt (7), North Carolina (11), Virginia Tech (17), Notre Dame (23) and NC State (24). Virginia Tech, Notre Dame and NC State – all still unbeaten this season – joined the poll this week. ACC teams are 37-9-16 (72.6%) in non-conference play, best of any league this season.

CHAMPIONSHIP CONFERENCE » Eight active ACC programs have won at least one national championship, the most of any conference. The 15 active ACC schools have combined for 20 titles.

DOMINANT COACHING » Six active ACC head coaches have won D-I national championships as a head coach: Mike Noonan (Clemson), Carlos Somoano (UNC), Jay Vidovich (Pitt), Jeremy Gunn (Stanford), Ian McIntyre (Syracuse) and George Gelnovatch (Virginia). NC State’s Marc Hubbard won a Division II national title in 2013.

RETURNING PLAYERS  » The Cardinal returns nine of its 11 starters, losing graduating seniors Mark Fisher and Ryan Dunn. The returning contingent includes Rowan Schnebly, Dylan Hooper, Noah Adnan, Palmer Bank, Fletcher Bank, Zach Bohane, Will Reilly, Shane de Flores, and Jackson Kiil who all started more than half of Stanford’s games last season.

NEWCOMER CARDINAL  » Stanford welcomes eight new players to the team, including four freshmen, two graduate transfers, and two walk on players. Joe Moyer, Eric Frintu, Alex Chow, and Jordan Victor make up the newest class of Stanford players. Louis Sterobo from Saint Mary’s and Nik White from Harvard are using their final year of eligibility to compete as graduate transfers. Stanford also added Trevor Islam and Lazslo Bollyky, two walk-on players, to the roster.

POSTSEASON REGULARS » The 2023 NCAA Tournament second round match against Missouri State marked Stanford’s 10th appearance in the NCAA tournament in the last 11 seasons and its 21st NCAA tournament appearance overall. The Cardinal has made seven College Cups, most recently in 2019, along with five College Cup Finals and three NCAA Championships (2015-17).

INAUGURAL ACC SEASON » Stanford kicks off its inaugural ACC season this year, completing its move from the Pac-12. The ACC features 15 men’s soccer programs, nine more conference opponents than the Cardinal had in its previous conference. Stanford will compete for ACC supremacy against Boston College, California, Clemson, Duke, Louisville, NC State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, SMU, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest. The new-look ACC features 15 men’s soccer programs this season with the addition of California, SMU and three-time national champion Stanford. Eleven of the ACC’s 15 programs competed in the NCAA Tournament last year.

CONFERENCE PROWESS » Nine ACC teams earned bids to the 2023 NCAA Championship, most of any conference in the 2023 tournament. Stanford (Quarterfinals) and SMU (Third Round) also competed in the 2023 tournament. 2023 marked the 11th straight season in which the ACC placed the most teams in the tournament and the 23rd consecutive season that at least five league teams earned a bid.

DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE » Rowan Schnebly led Stanford to three consecutive shutouts during the 2024 preseason and most recently kept clean sheets against Cal State Fullerton and UC Riverside so far this season. Schnebly ranks 32nd in the NCAA in goalie minutes played (532) and 47th in goals against average (0.845).

A DOMINANT RUN » Under Jeremy Gunn, Stanford has solidified its place among college soccer’s elite. No team has won more NCAA titles since 2006 than the Cardinal (3). The Cardinal has won six of the last eight Pac-12 championships, including five straight titles from 2014-18.

CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE » Stanford is one of just two programs to win three straight NCAA titles (2015-17). Virginia won four in a row from 1991-94. It is also one of seven to win at least three national championships along with Saint Louis (10), Indiana (8), Virginia (7), San Francisco (4), UCLA (4) and Maryland (4). Stanford went 52-7-10 (.826) during its three-year championship run.

GREAT UNDER GUNN » One of four coaches to win NCAA titles in both Division I and Division II, head coach Jeremy Gunn has led a team to the College Cup final four times in the past 10 seasons. He and Virginia’s Bruce Arena (1991-94) are the only coaches to win three consecutive NCAA men’s soccer championships. His teams are 154-48-46 (.713) in his 12 seasons on The Farm and he owns a career record of 341-109-77 (.720) in 23 seasons, a mark which makes him the sixth-winningest active coach at the Division I level (by percentage). Gunn’s 341 career wins rank 12th among all active coaches currently at the Division I level.