Junior defenseman Brandon Vincent played the hero, putting a dagger in Oregon State (7-3) with an 89th-minute stunner, as the No. 18 Stanford men’s soccer team (7-1) pulled off a win in Corvallis, Oregon on Thursday night. The game started slow and sloppy, as the Beavers committed two fouls early and the Cardinal added another, and it took until the 11th minute for either side to show some life. But after a ball that nearly put Stanford ahead was called offside, the game immediately seemed to open up.

Senior defenseman Jimmy Callinan provided the Cardinal with their first real chance, as his ball faded wide of the mark, but enough to make OSU senior goalkeeper Matt Bersano take a long look. Stanford looked encouraged for the next five minutes, and then the game really began to open up. OSU forced three saves by sophomore Cardinal keeper Andrew Epstein, recording two extremely close shots, including one that hit the woodwork. Following a substitution in the 35th minute, Stanford began to regroup, ending the half with a strong effort highlighted by a shot by fifth-year senior midfielder Bobby Edwards in the 37th minute. Stanford’s revitalized effort was met by a cynical OSU defense, one that committed four fouls in the remainder of the half.

Stanford came out of the gates fast to start the second half, but it was not enough to overcome the stout Beaver defense. OSU continued to play physically and the fouls started to amount on both sides, particularly from OSU. The game took on an increasingly chippy nature and the officials took notice; the game ended with three yellow cards, two for OSU and one on Stanford’s Callinan.

The game looked as if it would turn into a slugfest, but the Cardinal seemed to find their footing in the waning minutes of the game. In the final ten minutes, the Cardinal produced four quality shots, two of which were on goal. It looked as though the game was destined for overtime – indeed, OSU seemed resigned to it – but in the 89th minute, the quality of Stanford’s attack was finally rewarded as Vincent took a loose ball from the top of the box and slotted it home against Bersano, who had previously been continuously frustrating the prying runs of Stanford.

The Cardinal will now continue their journey north to face the Washington Huskies on Sunday at 5 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks.

Contact Nicholas Radoff at nradoff ‘at’ stanford.edu.