Tar Heels on Tap

STANFORD, Calif. — Continuing the hottest start under Roz Ellis, Stanford field hockey is back in action for its first Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) matchup of the season, ending a three-game homestand against North Carolina on Friday night. First strike against the Tar Heels for Stanford’s Most Valuable Professor Match is slated for 6 p.m. PT. 

FIRST STRIKE

The Cardinal rounds out its three-game homestand having earned a clinical 4-1 win over in-state foe UC Davis on Tuesday. Anya Jackson secured a three-quarter shutout while recording her seventh win of the season while Star Horlock secured her second collegiate brace with two second-half goals in the win. 

In what was a grudge match through the first 15 minutes, Stanford’s youth found the breakthrough with Jula Proschel securing her second collegiate goal, finishing off a feed from Opal Sparling to push the Cardinal ahead into halftime, 1-0. In the third quarter, however, Stanford pounced on the Aggies with Jenny O’Grady and the first of two Star Horlock goals pushing the lead to three. Though UC Davis pushed through with a penalty corner tally to make things interesting early in the fourth, Stanford’s man-down defense held firm while Horlock secured the insurance tally late in regulation to clinch the 4-1 win. 

Star Horlock leads the Cardinal in goals and points this season after her second collegiate brace on Tuesday. Horlock’s six goals and 13 points tie her career-high in both categories. Jenny O’Grady has also posted a new career high in goals as the junior secured her fourth of the season in the win on Tuesday.

Natalie Hoppe continues to lead the team in helpers with a career-high six on the campaign while Caroline Richard, Grace Essalih, Liv Martin and Opal Sparling slot second with two on the season. In total, 12 Cardinal have recorded a point this season while nine players have secured a goal. 

Defensively, three Cardinal have started all five games with Hoppe leading the Cardinal in minutes played with 405 while Mia Clark and Puja Nanjappa follow in minutes played with 390 and 380, respectively. Stanford’s penalty corner defense has showed strong this season as the Cardinal is 25-for-28 on penalty corner clearances. Between the posts, Anya Jackson has earned the start and decision in each of the eight games this season, recording her first collegiate shutout in the win over Holy Cross. 

Jackson has posted a new career high in wins (7) while recording a 0.93 goals-against average coupled with a .816 save percentage. Jackson earned a career-high 12 saves in the loss to Northwestern, becoming the third goalkeeper to record 12 saves in a game since the 2019 season (Kelsey Bing: 2019, Daisy Ford: 2025).

Stanford’s bout against the Tar Heels marks the 18th meeting all time between the two programs. North Carolina took last season’s bout in Chapel Hill while the Cardinal welcomes the Tar Heels on The Farm for just the third time in the series’ history.