STANFORD, Calif. — No. 14/13 Stanford begins its inaugural Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) slate this weekend, hitting the road for its first-ever conference tilt against No. 7 Virginia on Saturday, February 22. Opening draw from Klöckner Stadium is slated for 9:02 a.m. PT. Drew Carter and Sheehan Stanwick-Burch will have the call for Stanford’s first nationally-televised game of the season on the ACC Network.
PICK 6
Sophomore Elise Murphy leads the team heading into Saturday’s contest in points (16) after accumulating 11 points via a 1-10-11 line over the two-game set last week against No. 21 Colorado and UC Davis. Murphy’s six assists in the 20-3 win over the Aggies ties Ashley Humphrey’s record set on March 17, 2023 at Colorado as the last time a Cardinal recorded six assists in a single game. She currently leads the conference in assists (11) and assists per game (3.67) entering the weekend.
Fellow sophomore attack Aliya Polisky leads Stanford in goals with 13 on the year and has recorded a hat trick in each of her first three games this season. Dating back to last season, Polisky has recorded a hat trick in four-consecutive games and six in her last seven outings with the one outlier being Stanford’s win in the Pac-12 Championship over Colorado (05/04/2024) where she recorded two goals en route to a three point afternoon.
Offensively, Stanford ranks near the top of the ACC in average scoring margin (+11.3) and ranks fourth among the 12 teams in total goals with 53 through its first three games. The Cardinal’s average of 28 points per game also sits third in the conference. Both Murphy and Polisky rank inside the top-10 in the ACC in points per game as well, sitting fifth (5.33) and ninth (5.00), respectively.
Lucy Pearson anchors a defense that sits second in the conference in goals-against average, limiting the opposition to 6.33 goals per game. Pearson has accumulated 17 saves this season while Ella Morton - who appeared most recently in the 20-3 win over UC Davis - grabbed two saves in her collegiate debut and has not allowed a goal this season. Stanford currently ranks 10th in the nation in scoring defense.
Dakota Uy and Jordyn Case slot inside the top-10 in the conference in draw controls entering the weekend’s matchup, claiming 14 and 13 draws, respectively. Ava Arceri has also slotted herself among the top in the conference on the draw, claiming 10 so far on the season. Uy - who already has surpassed her combined draw control total from her first two years on the farm - set and tied her single-game high in draw controls against Colorado and UC Davis, grabbing seven draws. Arceri set a career high in draw controls with six against the Aggies. Case, meanwhile, set a career-high with seven draw controls in the 18-6 win over USC.
Stanford boasts some of the top individuals defensively in the conference in ground balls and caused turnovers. Olivia Rose is second in the conference with 11 ground balls entering the weekend while Rylee Bouvier and Maddigan Miller rank inside the top-10 in the ACC in caused turnovers per game with both averaging two per game.