STANFORD, Calif. — No. 1 Stanford stormed back with a pair of second-half goals from Jack Pymm and Logan Tsopanoglou to earn a 2-1 victory over UC Davis on Sunday evening.
The win extends a regular season unbeaten streak at home to 14 matches, as Stanford (4-0-0) sweeps the season-opening homestand with four consecutive victories. The Cardinal is now 13-5-3 all-time against UC Davis.
Stanford had to overcome an early deficit for the second time this season, but a commanding second half tilted the match in the Cardinal's favor as they finished with a 17-9 edge on shots and a 8-2 advantage on corner kicks.
"Obviously, we're all disappointed to concede so early but I was pretty impressed with the response," said Jeremy Gunn, the Knowles Family Director of Men's Soccer. "I thought we settled into the game well and completely dominated the game in the second half, where you always felt the goals were coming."
UC Davis needed just 25 seconds to open the scoring as Rafael Matiello ripped a shot from the top of the box that tucked just under the crossbar. Jake Hobbs picked up the assist on the play. Moments later, Cardinal goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly punched another dangerous look from the Aggies to keep the deficit at one.
As the half wore on, Stanford started to find its footing and appeared to equalize in the 33rd minute, when Maximo Nystrom poked the ball into the net in a flurry in front of goal. However, VAR review ruled Nystrom offside earlier in the play and as a result, the Cardinal went into the locker room trailing for the first time this season.
Stanford returned to the pitch with much more urgency, recording the first eight shots of the game in search of the equalizer, including a Pymm attack from distance that rattled the crossbar in the 59th minute.
The breakthrough finally came in the 66th minute, as Dillon Logan was brought down by an Aggie defender on a corner kick opportunity, sending the Cardinal to the penalty spot. Pymm stepped up to take the kick and scored his second penalty of the season to pull Stanford even at 1-1.
Momentum continued to lean heavily in Stanford's favor as the half progressed, finding the winner in the 84th minute. Alex Chow cycled a ball up the right wing to Eric Frintu, who delivered a great ball at the doorstep to Logan Tsopanoglou for the right-footed finish. The goal was Tsopanoglou’s team-leading third of the season.