CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — For the first time in program history, Stanford women’s lacrosse is into the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals, taking on the No. 2-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels on Thursday, May 14. Opening draw from Dorrance Field is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT.
Opening Draw
Stanford heads into Thursday evening having earned its first-ever NCAA Second Round win as the Cardinal took down the No. 7-seeded Michigan Wolverines on Sunday, 13-12. Stanford began the game having to come back from an early 2-0 hole, grabbing its first lead of the half with a 4-0 run into the second quarter before a late 6-2 scoring run from the Wolverines saw the hosts lead 8-6 at the halftime break. Down late in the third, 10-7, the Cardinal broke through on its own 6-2 run in the final 18 minutes including a game-winning goal with 50 seconds left to earn the record-breaking 17th win of the season with the 13-12 decision.
Mallory Hasselbeck led the Cardinal with her team-leading four points via a 3-1-4 line, earning her fourth hat trick of the season - and first in 10 games - while Aliya Polisky secured her second three-point outing of the tournament with a hat trick performance with both players recording goals in the game-winning 6-2 scoring run. Rylee Bouvier amassed five draw controls while earning four caused turnovers in a complete defensive performance while Stanford’s defense factored into eight of UM’s 13 turnovers during the game. Lucy Pearson earned five saves including a free-position shot save in the final three minutes that kept UM within reach.
Aliya Polisky, who was recently named a USA Lacrosse Third Team All-American, leads the Cardinal in scoring heading into Sunday’s matchup, racking up 76 points on the campaign while leading the team with 49 goals and posting a career-high 27 assists. Ava Arceri slots second in points with 58 on the season while slotting behind Polisky for the team lead in goals with 47. Martha Oakey slots third with a career-high 57 points after posting career-high’s in goals (26) and assists (31) while Mallory Hasselbeck is the lone other Cardinal to have recorded 50 or more points as she has posted a career-high 50 in her first season with Stanford. Eight players have recorded 20+ goals this season with Lindsey Devir becoming the latest member of the 20-goal club having snagged a brace in the game against PSU. In total, 11 players have recorded double-digit goals this season as Stanford is the lone team in DI women’s lacrosse to have more than nine players record double-digit goals.
Stanford ranks fifth in the conference in assists per game, averaging 7.33 through 21 games as Oakey leads the Cardinal with 31 on the season. Oakey set a new single-season high in assists following the win over Clemson while setting a new season-high in points with 57 having recorded an assist in 10-straight contests entering the ACC Championship game. Polisky and Hasselbeck slot behind Oakey with 27 and 25 helpers apiece while six Cardinal have recorded double-digit assists entering Friday.
On the draw, Jordyn Case leads the Cardinal with 74 draw controls having earned three in the win over UM on Sunday while posting a season-high eight draw controls in the win over Virginia earlier this season. Annabel Frist slots second on the Cardinal with 72 draw controls having broken Stanford’s all-time draw control record of 372 that was set by Genesis Lucero (2016-21). Frist has tallied 390 draw controls during her career at Stanford which ranks eighth among active DI women’s lacrosse players and 25th across all divisions. Rylee Bouvier and Amanda Lawson follow behind with 35 and 29 draw controls, respectively.
Stanford continues to rank near the top of the nation defensively with Rylee Bouvier and Kate Bellissimo leading the charge for the Cardinal. Bouvier leads the team with a single-season record 38 caused turnovers after accumulating four in the win over UM while Bellissimo sits close behind with 33 after grabbing two last Friday as both players rank top-10 all-time in single season caused turnovers. Bellissimo also leads the Cardinal in ground balls this season with 52 while junior Kaleigh Sommers has posted career numbers in her first season on defense with 41 ground balls and 27 caused turnovers after stellar performances leading into the postseason.
In cage, Lucy Pearson made her return to action in the ACC Tournament and has started the last five games for the Cardinal. Pearson holds an 13-1 record in 2026 and has posted a 7.97 goals-against average coupled with a .437 save percentage. Pearson has also appeared in 55 games during her Stanford career which is fifth-most all-time while recording the third-best goals-against average in program history at 9.02. Ella Morton has seen seven starts in goal for the Cardinal, posting a 4-3 record. Morton holds a 9.58 goals-against average coupled with a .438 save percentage while earning a career-high 53 saves in 10 appearances.