STANFORD, Calif. — Following a successful senior season, Stanford field hockey defender Cara Sambeth has been named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division I Collegiate Senior Team, the organization announced Thursday. Sambeth becomes Stanford’s third Senior Team selection and first since Sarah Johnson and Corinne Zanolli earned the award in 2020.
A native of Munich, Germany, Sambeth helped Stanford to three shutouts on the season while contributing one goal and two assists in 16 games. Sambeth nabbed her first assist in the 2-1 win over Ohio before lending a hand in Jenny O’Grady’s goal in the win over Louisville. She later opened the floodgates with her first goal of the season in the 4-1 win over Davidson that closed the non-conference slate for the Cardinal.
Sambeth was a mainstay in the defense during her four-year tenure with the Cardinal, starting 59 of her 63 appearances during that time. She ends her Stanford career with eight goals and seven assists, totalling 23 points. Sambeth is a two-time All-ACC second team and two-time All-America East second team member while also earning NFHCA DI All-West Region second team honors in 2024.
Having been an offensive leader in 2024, sharing the team lead in goals (6) while slotting second in assists (12), Sambeth also aided the Stanford backline during her time on The Farm, earning 10 defensive saves including nine in her freshman campaign as the Cardinal played eight games without a goalkeeper in 2021. Sambeth also set an NCAA record her freshman season, tying the mark for second-most defensive saves in a game with five against Liberty.
Having appeared between the posts for three games her freshman year, Sambeth owns a 1.07 goals-against average and earned nine total saves and one shutout which came against UMass-Lowell in what was a 3-0 win for the Cardinal.