April 14, 2011
STANFORD, Calif. -
The Stanford women's soccer team will take on Notre Dame in a rematch of last season's NCAA College Cup final to highlight the Cardinal's 2011 home schedule.
The Notre Dame match on Sept. 9 is the nightcap of a high-powered Stanford women's volleyball-soccer doubleheader. It begins with the Cardinal volleyballers against defending NCAA champ Penn State at Maples Pavilion at 5:30 p.m. and is followed by the soccer match at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium at 7:30 p.m.
The Cardinal has lost 2010 Hermann Trophy winner Christen Press to graduation, but features four returning All-Americans: forward Lindsay Taylor (11 goals, 6 assists in 2010), midfielders Mariah Nogueira and Teresa Noyola (10 goals, 12 assists), and defender/forward Courtney Verloo.
Among other returning players, versatile Camille Levin (2 goals, 11 assists) and goalkeeper Emily Oliver (0.31 goals against average, 10 shutouts) were NCAA All-Tournament selections. Outside back Rachel Quon was a first-team All-Pac-10 selection and central defender Alina Garciamendez, like Noyola, is a member of Mexico's World Cup team.
Soccer's opening night is Aug. 19 against Penn State at 7 p.m. as Stanford hopes to extend its 42-match regular-season unbeaten streak, 39-match home unbeaten streak, and 35-match home winning streak.
Among its 20 matches, Stanford plays 13 teams that were in the 2010 NCAA tournament, including six at home. Eleven of those opponents reached the second round, five reached the third, and three (Notre Dame, Georgetown, and Washington) reached at least the quarterfinals.
Nine opponents finished the season ranked among the NSCAA Top 25, including eight of the top 20, and three in the top 10 (No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 8 Portland, and No. 10 Maryland).
Stanford also plays four teams that won conference championships last season: Big Ten co-champ Penn State, Big East National Division champ Notre Dame, Big West champ UC Irvine, and West Coast Conference champ Portland.
Also, consider that 15 opponents had .500 or winning overall records in 2010.
Stanford's 11-match home schedule is highlighted by two particular weekends. The Notre Dame match is part of the Stanford Nike Invitational (Sept. 9-11), which features four teams, and two days of doubleheaders at Cagan Stadium. Besides Stanford-Notre Dame, a rematch of the Irish's 1-0 victory in Cary, N.C., 2010 NCAA second-rounder Santa Clara plays NCAA third-rounder UC Irvine in the Sept. 9 opener. On Sept. 11, Stanford plays UCI at 1 p.m., preceded by Notre Dame against Santa Clara.
Stanford's Pac-12 home schedule features USC (Oct. 2) and UCLA (Oct. 4) - perennial conference powers that each advanced to at least the second round of the 2010 NCAA tournament. Stanford has eliminated UCLA in each of the past two NCAA tournaments.
Stanford also plays host to conference newcomers Utah (Oct. 21) and Colorado (Oct. 23), as well as a regular-season finale against Cal on Nov. 5.
But first, two-time conference defending champ Stanford takes its 20-match conference winning streak into its Pac-12 opener against visiting Arizona on Sept. 24 at 7 p.m.
| Home Schedule | ||
| Date | Opponent | Time |
| Aug. 19 | Penn State | 7 p.m. |
| Aug. 21 | Pacific | 1 p.m. |
| Sept. 4 | Northwestern | 1 p.m. |
| Sept. 9 | Notre Dame | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sept. 11 | UC Irvine | 1 p.m. |
| Sept. 24 | Arizona | 7 p.m. |
| Oct. 7 | USC | 7 p.m. |
| Oct. 9 | UCLA | 1 p.m. |
| Oct. 21 | Utah | 7 p.m. |
| Oct. 23 | Colorado | 1 p.m. |
| Nov. 5 | California | 7 p.m. |