CARY, N.C. – In a battle of the top two teams in the nation, No. 1 Stanford (16-1-2) claimed the ACC Championship and the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament following a 2-2 draw with No. 2 Notre Dame (14-1-3) that saw the Cardinal win a penalty kick shootout 5-4.
Sophomore Charlotte Kohler clinched the match in penalties, burying her shot following a missed penalty from Notre Dame in the sixth round of PKs.
Andrea Kitahata, Shae Harvey, Y-Lan Nguyen and Mia Bhuta also made penalty kicks, while Stanford goalkeeper Caroline Birkel saved one and saw one off the woodwork while reading the penalty direction correctly.
The Cardinal scored the first two goals of the match, with Allie Montoya breaking the scoreless match in the 29th minute. Jasmine Aikey, who was named Tournament MVP, jostled with an Irish defender before heel-flicking a pass onto Montoya who broke through the box toward goal. Notre Dame goalkeeper Sonoma Kasica came off her line, but Montoya slotted her shot past and into the back of the net for her seventh goal of the year.
Leading 1-0 at halftime, Stanford doubled its lead early in the second half on a strike from distance off the foot of Aikey. The senior lined up her left-footed shot in the 47th minute and deposited it in the upper-left corner of the net for her team-best 15th goal of the season.
Refusing to surrender the title without a fight, Notre Dame got a goal back on a spectacular effort from ACC Offensive Player of the Year Izzy Engle in the 69th minute. Engle’s goal was her conference-leading 19th of the season.
Notre Dame fought all the way back to even in the 75th minute when Charlie Codd connected for her second goal of the year.
Outshot 15-3 in the second 45 minutes, Stanford got a second wind in overtime, settling back in and putting a few quality chances on frame, but the score remained knotted after 20 extra minutes of play.
Both squads converted their first three penalties before Birkel made a save on the fourth from Notre Dame. The Cardinal had an opportunity to clinch the shootout with its fifth kick, but Kasica came up with a huge save of her own to force one extra round. After Codd dinged the left post, Kohler stepped to the spot and sent the Cardinal into celebration.
Following the conclusion of the match, four Cardinal players were named to the 2025 Ally ACC Women’s Soccer All-Tournament Team. The MVP Aikey was joined by Kohler, Kitahata and Elise Evans.
Stanford will now await the announcement of the NCAA Tournament field on Monday at 1 p.m.
2025 Ally ACC Women’s Soccer All-Tournament Team
Jasmine Aikey, Stanford (MVP)
Charlotte Kohler, Stanford
Andrea Kitahata, Stanford
Elise Evans, Stanford
Izzy Engle, Notre Dame
Annabelle Chukwu, Notre Dame
Leah Klenke, Notre Dame
Charlie Codd, Notre Dame
Meredith McDermott, Virginia
Victoria Safradin, Virginia
Kat Rader, Duke
GAME NOTES:
- Stanford won its first ACC Tournament Championship after winning the ACC regular-season title earlier this year
- The Cardinal is 62-7-10 over its last 79 matches and is unbeaten in its last 12
- Stanford won a penalty kick shootout for the first time since advancing past No. 5 Arkansas 4-2 in PKs following ga 1-1 draw on November 24, 2024 in the NCAA Tournament third round
- Jasmine Aikey recorded her seventh career match with at least one goal and an assist, including her fourth this season … has contributed at least a point in 15 of the first 19 matches this season, has scored in seven of her last 10, and has a goal in 12 of the 19 contests this season ... has scored in three consecutive matches … leads the team in total points with 38 (team-high 15 goals and eight assists) … has contributed 37 career goals to rank 10th in Stanford history
- Caroline Birkel was credited with a season-best six saves for the second consecutive match
- Charlotte Kohler has managed at least a point in 15 of the first 19 matches this season, including each of the last nine
- Allie Montoya has contributed at least one point in nine of her 13 matches played this season ... has scored seven goals and added five assists to manage 19 points