No. 3 Stanford women’s soccer (16-1-1, 9-1 Pac-12) took down yet another opponent as they defeated Arizona State (6-10-2, 1-8-1) 2-1 in Tempe, Arizona. This marks the Cardinal’s sixth straight win and keeps them once again at the top of the Pac-12 rankings for the week.
Junior midfielder Andi Sullivan recorded her second brace in as many games to keep Stanford on top.
Sunday’s starters featured a variety of experienced upperclassmen along with some of the younger team members. Freshman defender Carly Malatskey started for the Cardinal and played all 90 minutes for the first time this season.
These freshmen were joined by some more veteran players, including senior midfielder/forward Megan Turner, senior goalkeeper Jane Campbell and senior defender Maddie Bauer. Coach Paul Ratcliffe’s ability to balance out the field with newer and senior members has proven to be one of Stanford’s main strengths.
The squad started out strong, already dominating in the first 20 minutes of play. By the 10th minute, sophomore midfielder Michelle Xiao had a close attempt on goal, and in the 21st minute, sophomore defender Tegan McGrady nearly bested the Sun Devils with a free kick that landed just wide of the net.
In the next 10 minutes, the Sun Devils challenged the Cardinal multiple times, pressuring hard in the final third of the field. Campbell and her defense were able to keep the opponents at bay, though, and the half ultimately ended scoreless, despite Stanford leading 6-3 in shot attempts.
The Cardinal’s first goal came in the 52nd minute when the Sun Devils had a handball in their own penalty box. Sullivan put the ball in the right middle of the goal from the penalty kick line.
Only 12 minutes later, Sullivan scored her second goal of the night off of a cross from junior forward Kyra Carusa. Sullivan was running right outside the box when Carusa placed the ball on her foot and allowed Sullivan to bury one into the bottom left.
Sullivan now leads the team with 10 goals scored, tallying twice the goals she did in the entirety of last season.
Stanford threatened its own lead as it scored an own goal off of a bounce against sophomore forward Averie Collins in the 67th minute, making the score 2-1.
Three minutes later, freshman Tierna Davidson almost notched another goal for the Cardinal, but it was saved at the last minute by the Sun Devils’ senior goalkeeper Ashley March, who was making her first career start on Arizona’s Senior Day.
The last half hour of play remained uneventful as the Cardinal kept tight possession of the ball. The defensive unit made up of McGrady, Bauer and sophomore Alana Cook shut down Arizona State opportunities, not allowing any balls to get too close to Campbell.
Up next, the Cardinal will take on rival California on Friday at Berkeley. If Stanford wins, it will secure the program’s 11th Pac-12 title.
Contact Laura Sussman at laura111 ‘at’ stanford.edu