DAVIS, Calif. — A 10-goal second quarter and a quartet of hat tricks proved to be the difference as the Stanford women’s lacrosse team dispatched UC Davis on Saturday, 23-7, to begin the 2026 campaign. With the win, Stanford opens the season 1-0 and claims its 12th-straight win over its opponents from the north.
Aliya Polisky, Martha Oakey, Rylee Bouvier and Lexi Rodell each recorded a hat trick on the afternoon while Lucy Pearson added three saves in three quarters. Stanford also earned debut goals from Mallory Hasselbeck and Olivia Prosper as 11 players recorded a goal while the entire Cardinal lineup secured minutes in the win.
The dominance began early for the Cardinal, as Stanford opened the scoring in Saturday’s affair just under a minute into the contest with Preseason All-ACC honoree Aliya Polisky needing 43 seconds to tally her first of the campaign. Following an equalizing tally from UC Davis with six minutes left, Martha Oakey tabbed her first of the season, finishing off a feed from Mallory Hasselbeck to put Stanford in the lead at the quarter break, 2-1.
The Cardinal, however, broke the game open in the second frame beginning with a tally from Annabel Frist who was making her first appearance for the Cardinal since April 13, 2024. Frist’s first of the campaign started a string of five goals inside of three minutes for the Cardinal that included goals from Rylee Bouvier, Jordyn Case, Lexi Rodell, and the second from Polisky that pushed Stanford ahead 7-1.
Stanford continued the second-quarter onslaught with five more goals in the final seven minutes with Rodell kickstarting the run. Following the tally from the Stanford sophomore, Mallory Hasselbeck earned her first goal for Stanford to put the Cardinal ahead by seven. Bouvier earned her second of the day with under four to go in the frame before Ava Arceri and Amanda Lawson tallied late in the half as the Cardinal tore ahead 12-1 at the break. Defensively, the Cardinal held firm on few chances for the Aggies, limiting the hosts to two shots in the second quarter to earn its first shutout frame of the season.
Coming out of the break, Stanford continued to pester the hosts, outscoring the Aggies 7-2 in the frame. Following answers by the hosts after Bouvier’s hat trick goal and Hasselbeck’s second, Stanford snatched the final five goals of the quarter, including four in the final five minutes to push the lead to 16. Oakey’s two, late-frame tallies completed the scoring in the frame as Polisky earned her first hat trick of the season, snatching it with a goal between tallies from Case and Lawson.
In the fourth, Stanford earned important minutes off the bench with multiple substitutions on the defensive and offensive fronts. Defensively, the Cardinal held strong in a shootout fourth quarter holding the Aggies' attack at hand. Offensively, Stanford garnered goals from multiple sources with Peep Williams scoring twice in her return to action. Having opened the scoring in the fourth quarter for Stanford, Williams potted her second of the day with over five minutes left before Olivia Prosper secured her first collegiate goal, giving Stanford a 23-5 advantage.
The Cardinal continued to work through the last efforts of the hosts to tear into the lead but the Cardinal defense held strong to give Stanford its first win of the season with the 23-7 decision.
Stanford is back in action in one week, hitting the road to begin Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play with a bout against No. 12/10 Clemson on Saturday, February 14. Opening draw from Clemson Lacrosse Complex is slated for noon ET / 9 a.m. PT.