STANFORD, Calif. — Stanford field hockey returns to the pitch following a week hiatus this weekend, playing host to No. 5 Syracuse and Boston College in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) action. First strike against the Orange on Friday, October 10 is slated for 5 p.m. while Sunday’s contest against the Eagles is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Stanford enters the weekend having split its last pair of contests to end the month of September, defeating No. 16 Louisville in a penalty shootout before falling to No. 3 Virginia in a close bout at Varsity Turf. Against the Cardinals, Jenny O’Grady’s first quarter tally gave Stanford the lead before the Cardinals struck back halfway through the second quarter to level the scoreline. With both sides unable to find the final goal through the remaining 57 minutes of action, the match went into a penalty shootout in which the Cardinal - behind the heroics of O’Grady and goalkeeper Anya Jackson - took by a 2-1 aggregate. Cara Sambeth and O’Grady scored in the shootout for the Cardinal while Jackson hindered four opportunities for Louisville as the Cardinal earned the 2-1 win, its first ACC win of the season and first win over a ranked opponent since November 4, 2023.
Against Virginia, the Cardinal did well to dispel one of the nation’s top scoring offenses as Jackson and her defensive corps negated eight shot attempts through the first half with Jackson recording three saves. However, Virginia nabbed the game-opening goal three minutes into the second half after an initial save by Jackson found the stick of a Cavalier who slotted it past the Cardinal defense. Stanford, though, continued to hold its own even with Virginia slotting home the final goal of the afternoon halfway through the fourth quarter as Jackson ended the day with five saves.
Offensively, Stanford is led in scoring by Kate Nemec who owns the team-lead in goals (3) and points (6) through 10 games this season. Following suit, Liv Martin and Summer Knight-Thompson sit second with five points a piece courtesy of a 2-1-5 line. Lending a helping hand, Mia Clark and Cara Sambeth lead the Cardinal with two assists this season while Clark serves one of three Cardinal to have started every game this season (Maroussia Walckiers and Scout Butler). Overall, 13 players have recorded a point this season for the Cardinal.
Defensively, the Cardinal is led by Scout Butler and Natalie Hoppe who have both eclipsed 500 minutes played this season. Butler also leads the Cardinal in shots this season with 15 while Hoppe sits second in freshman scoring with four points which also slots tied for fourth overall on the team.
Between the posts, Anya Jackson and Daisy Ford have both seen time this season with the former grabbing the last two starts for the Cardinal. Jackson, who earned her second win of the season with the penalty shootout victory over Louisville, enters the weekend with a 2-2 record with 17 saves on the year. She currently owns a 1.76 goals-against average coupled with a .708 save percentage in five games played.
Ford, meanwhile, owns a 2-4 record this season and leads the conference in saves per game, averaging 4.86 in seven games. She enters the weekend with a 2.34 goals-against average and .694 save percentage while sitting second in the conference in total saves with 34.
Stanford’s win over No. 16 Louisville last Friday was the first ranked win for the Cardinal since Nov. 4, 2023 when the Cardinal took down No. 23 Maine in the America East Tournament Semifinals, 3-1.
Heading into the weekend, Stanford owns the ninth-hardest remaining schedule in DI Field Hockey and the fifth-hardest in the ACC. Currently ranked 27th in the RPI selection rankings, Stanford battles Syracuse who ranks eighth currently before taking on 19th-ranked Boston College.