April 20, 2010
Stanford, Calif. - Stanford men's soccer will continue the spring season this weekend with a road game versus Sacramento State. The Cardinal opened its spring season last weekend with a 2-2 tie against San Francisco. The game will be played on Saturday, April 24, at 2pm. Both teams won 12 games last year and were NCAA participants.
The Cardinal is coming off a 12-6-2 season, advancing to the Sweet 16, before losing to eventual NCAA finalist, Akron. Stanford returns seven starters, including NSCAA All-American Bobby Warshaw. Warshaw was also the leading scorer despite playing along the back line. The 2009 team used a balanced scoring attack with 11 different goal scorers combining for 28 goals. 10 of the 11 goals scorers will be back in 2010 with just Evan Morgan and his four goals departing because of graduation.
On defense, the Cardinal bring back starters Warshaw, Ryan Thomas and Hunter Gorskie. In addition, Shaun Culver started the final seven games in the central defense and returns as well. The Cardinal defense was the backbone of the '09 season, allowing just 18 goals.
The most obvious change will be in goal with the graduation of four-year starter John Moore. Redshirt freshmen Jason Dodson and Galen Perkins will compete for the starting spot in 2010.
Another key loss is central midfielder, Michael Strickland, a two-time all-conference player. Strickland was a three-year captain and his leadership on the field will be missed on Sunday as Stanford returns to his hometown of Sacramento.
The Hornets should be a formidable opponent, fresh off the best season in program history. Sacramento State compiled a 12-6-3 record and won the MPSF conference tournament to advance to the NCAA's. In the NCAA tournament, Sac State beat Loyola Marymount to advance to the second round for the first time in school history before UCLA ended the tournament run.
The rest of the spring schedule will be announced soon. Stay tuned to gostanford.com for updates on when and where the Cardinal will be competing.