No. 2 Stanford women’s soccer (6-0-1) continued its dominant play this weekend as it easily defeated No. 10 Minnesota (6-2-0) by a score of 4-1 and came to a 2-2 draw with No. 20 Notre Dame (5-1-2). The stalemate was the first of the season for the Cardinal, who had won their first six games. Strong performances from junior Andi Sullivan and senior Megan Turner paced the team with 2 goals apiece against the Gophers and the Irish, respectively.
Friday’s rout of Minnesota began early, when sophomore midfielder Jordan DiBiasi scored in just the 4th minute. Freshman Tierna Davidson tacked on another just 10 minutes later, the first goal of her collegiate career. Although the Golden Gophers got on the scoreboard in the 47th minute, Sullivan scored twice in the last 20 minutes of regulation to make Stanford’s lead nearly insurmountable. Sullivan has tallied 3 goals already this season, just two away from her season high of 5.
Stanford and Notre Dame traded goals on Sunday, and in the end, neither team was able to claim victory. Turner opened with a score for the Cardinal after a 12-pass sequence ended in a cross to Turner from freshman Cece Gee. The last three goals of the matchup were scored within a 6:01 span, as Turner regained the lead for Stanford with her second goal of the game. The senior’s 4 goals so far this season mark a career high, as she had previously never had more than two goals in a single season.
Although Stanford had time to take a lead in regulation, the team was unable to take advantage of two close opportunities. Neither team was able to capitalize in two overtime periods, and although they remain undefeated, the Cardinal’s bid to match their 2009 perfect season came to an end.
With an impressive record of 6-0-1, Stanford will continue its nine-game homestand when it takes on Santa Clara (2-3-3) on Friday at 5 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Pac-12 Networks.
Contact Olivia Hummer at ohummer ‘at’ stanford.edu.