Like almost all of his contemporaries, women’s soccer coach Paul Ratcliffe says he focuses on one game at a time, no matter the situation. With his team just one win away from clinching the first Pac-12 title in any sport, tonight’s road matchup with No. 21 Oregon State might be one instance when Ratcliffe is true to his word.
Stanford (16-0-1, 8-0 Pac-12) is the country’s top team in every major poll and is also one of just three undefeated teams, along with Oklahoma State and Pepperdine. But the team will face a stiff test in its matchup with the Beavers (12-4-1, 6-2), which have won four out of their last five matches and swept Washington and then-No. 18 Washington State last weekend.
Just three games remain for both teams, and even a draw would clinch at least a share of Stanford’s third conference title in a row. And since the Cardinal has won its last 28 conference games, anything less than three full points would be a surprise.
But Oregon State is playing very good soccer right now, and Beavers forward Chelsea Buckland was named Pac-12 Player of the Week and put on CollegeSoccer360.com’s Primetime Performer Honor Roll last week after scoring the game-winning goal against the Cougars.
However, Stanford has traditionally owned Oregon State both at home and in Corvallis — the Cardinal is 17-1-0 all-time against the Beavers and won the last meeting between the teams 2-0.
And Stanford’s attack has been on top of its game of late, with senior forward Lindsay Taylor scoring goals in each of the last four matches. The two-time First Team All-Pac-10 selection said that the credit for her recent success deserves to go to offense’s increased fluidity.
“I have to give credit to my teammates,” she said, “because they’ve given me such great balls to work with. And I’ve been fortunate to get really good crosses in the box. The offense is really starting to gel. We’re starting to make the right runs, the midfielders are really getting in there, and the outside backs are moving into the attack. Hopefully we can keep scoring.”
Junior forward Marjani Hing-Glover and freshman forward Chioma Ubogabu have also played big roles in Stanford’s scoring spree. Hing-Glover has burst onto the scene this season with five goals, more than doubling her career total. And Ubogabu, who was very highly recruited out of high school, looks to be a lock for the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team with eight goals and nine assists.
No matter what happens against Oregon State, Stanford will have to find a way to stay motivated against Oregon (8-7-2, 3-4-1) on Sunday. The Ducks have struggled all season long, battling injuries and having to play with a very young lineup, but they are unbeaten in their last three games, knocking off the Cougars 1-0 last Sunday.
After the weekend road trip, the Cardinal will return home for the last game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 5 against rival California. After that, Stanford will have to wait and see who it draws in the NCAA Tournament, which begins Friday, Nov. 11.
Tonight’s game in Corvallis will kick off at 7 p.m., with Sunday’s match against the Ducks in Eugene slated to start at 1 p.m.