Big Match To End Regular Season

STANFORD, Calif. — Having competed in two, tightly contested bouts along the East Coast a week ago, Stanford field hockey is back in action against Bay Area rival No. 17 Cal on Thursday, October 29. First strike from Varsity Turf against the Golden Bears is slated for 6 p.m. PT. 

FIRST STRIKE

Stanford returns to The Farm having battled hard against tough opposition in No. 14 Syracuse and Boston College last weekend. Stanford twice led against the Orange, earning the opening goal from the stick of Liv Martin before retaking the lead before halftime as Star Horlock nabbed her ninth of the campaign. However, Syracuse snagged the final two goals of the match to steal a 3-2 win last Friday. The Cardinal then competed hard in the regular season road finale, falling in a close match against Boston College, 3-0. 

Star Horlock continues to lead the Cardinal in both goals and points this season after scoring in the matchup against Syracuse for her ninth of the season. Her nine goals and 20 points set career-high’s in those categories as the senior returns to Stanford following international duty last season. Jenny O’Grady slots second on the squad in goals with a career-high five on the season while Kate Nemec joins Summer Knight-Thompson and Ella Ganocy with three on the campaign following her tally against the Aggies two weeks ago.

Natalie Hoppe continues to lead the team in helpers with a career-high six on the campaign while Liv Martin claims second on the team with three on the campaign following an assist on Mia Clark’s attacking penalty corner tally against Duke earlier this month. In total, 15 Cardinal have recorded a point while 12 players have secured a goal including 10 who have scored multiple times this season.

Defensively, Puja Nanjappa has started all 16 games to lead the Cardinal and is second on the team in minutes played with 817. Natalie Hoppe slots first on the squad in minutes with 878 having started all 15 games she has appeared in. Stanford’s penalty corner defense has shown strong this season as the Cardinal is 54-for-72 on penalty corner clearances while Stanford’s PCA has converted on 10 out of 63 attempts.

Between the posts, Anya Jackson has earned the start and decision in each of the 16 games this season, recording her second collegiate shutout in the win over UC Davis two weeks ago. Jackson has posted a new career high in wins (9) while recording a 2.15 goals-against average coupled with a .725 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). The junior currently leads the conference in saves with 87 on the campaign. 

Stanford’s bout against the Golden Bears marks the 126th all-time meeting between the two teams dating back to 1976. Stanford currently leads the all-time series 62-58-5 including wins in two of the last three matchups. Cal, however, took last season’s matchup in Berkeley, 3-1.