Two years ago, the Stanford men’s soccer team rode a wave of fresh attacking talent and the strong presence of a defense anchored by then-junior All-American Bobby Warshaw to a Sweet-16 berth in the NCAA Tournament. With an eight-game improvement over the previous season, many hoped the season was a hallmark of things to come and a return to prominence for the entire program.

But last year, a preseason top-15 ranking did not translate into regular-season success, as several critical injuries and a string of bad luck combined to halt the Cardinal’s progress in a trying season that saw Stanford finish 8-10 and 4-6 in the brutal Pac-10.

With Warshaw now moving into a role with FC Dallas in the MLS, Stanford has sought to redefine itself as a team focused on being able to control the game and “impose its will on the other team,” according to coach Bret Simon, now in his 11th season on the Farm.

Six games into the season, though, it’s been tough going for Stanford. A difficult early schedule saw the Cardinal play on the road on national television against then-No. 4 Maryland on Sept. 2. The Terrapins, who are now perched atop the rankings at No. 1, scored just 22 seconds into the match to take the wind out of Stanford’s sails.

A tough 1-0 loss in overtime at Georgetown brought back memories of last season’s start, when Stanford lost four consecutive games (two in overtime) to open the season.

But a return to the friendly confines of the newly renovated Laird Q. Cagan Stadium on Sept. 9 jump-started the Card’s season with an energetic 3-1 victory over then-No. 15 Kentucky.

After conceding another early goal, Stanford fought back with a beautiful header from sophomore midfielder JJ Koval off a well-struck corner kick by junior Eric Anderson—it was the rising star Koval’s first career goal. Minutes later, it was déjà vu as Anderson bent another free kick into the box and this time, junior forward Adam Jahn rose up and sent it into the back of the net for a 2-1 lead.

Junior Dersu Abolfathi capped the scoring five minutes into the second half as he slotted the ball past Kentucky’s keeper on a wonderful pass from freshman Zach Batteer. The rout was complete.

But two days later against Lehigh, Stanford couldn’t capitalize on any of its scoring chances and fell to 1-4 with a 1-0 loss to the Mountain Hawks.

On Saturday, Stanford appeared to have found the right recipe for success at home against the University of San Francisco, as the Card came out on the attack from the start with six first-half shots. Senior Alexander Binnie came on as a substitute and gave Stanford the lead with his first career goal in the 35th minute after a nifty one-on-one with the keeper.

But the lead was short-lived, as Dons freshman forward Miguel Aguilar equalized just over a minute later with a brilliant goal, turning and cracking a 30-yard rocket just over the outstretched arms of sophomore goalie Drew Hutchins and just under the crossbar.

But Stanford continued to press, and midfielder Garrett Gunther’s hustle forced a turnover in the offensive third. The redshirt senior pounced on it for his first goal of the season.

San Francisco refused to quit and actually started to turn the tide against Stanford with repeated shots testing Hutchins. Another long ball finally found a gap in the defense, and a USF forward put away an easy chance right in front of goal to level the score at two in the 66th minute.

From there, the game turned very chippy, as USF racked up foul after foul and an astounding seven yellow cards in the final 60 minutes. A particularly egregious tackle drew a red card in the 72nd minute on the Dons’ Kevin Orozco, and Stanford appeared to have the edge as USF had to play down a man. Jahn almost scored on a free kick and freshman forward Zach Batteer narrowly missed some chances as the game headed to overtime.

But neither side could capitalize. That was particularly frustrating for the Cardinal, which was up a man for almost 50 minutes and up two men in the final minutes after yet another red card was issued to the Dons.

Stanford will need to find a spark as Pac-12 play approaches if it hopes to make the NCAA Tournament. Next up for the Card is the Stanford Nike Classic this weekend, in which it battles Harvard on Friday night and Vermont on Sunday afternoon. Both games will be played at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium.