Once again, Stanford (12-1, 5-0 Pac-12) forwards junior Catarina Macario and sophomore Sophia Smith finished with a couple of first half goals on Sunday. The same happened less than three days before, only this time the Cardinal were not shut out in the second half.
Junior forward Madison Haley assisted on another Macario goal, then had the favor returned for her own goal. Senior forward Carly Malatskey scored the fifth and final goal.
No. 2 women’s soccer travelled to Oregon (4-4-5, 0-3-2 Pac-12) and came away with a dominant 5-0 victory. Not only are the Cardinal undefeated in conference play, but the team holds a 19-2 goal differential against Pac-12 teams.
Stanford was held goalless for the first 41 minutes, but a penalty kick awarded to the Cardinal after an Oregon handling call allowed Macario to open the scoring. Less than a minute later, Smith turned her defender, broke towards goal, and finished the solo effort to put Stanford up a pair at halftime.
In nine games since returning from injury, Smith has scored seven times, including in each of the last seven games.
In the 53rd minute, Macario connected with Haley on a one-two and blew a shot past Katelyn Carter, the Oregon goalkeeper. Carter made four saves but allowed five goals in 79 minutes. Charlotte Brisley replaced her in goal for the final eleven minutes and made one save.
Through the first 13 games, Macario has set a new career high with 18 goals. The reigning Hermann Trophy award winner has moved into sixth in program history in career points and has scored in each of the past six matches.
Macario was back on the ball in the 65th minute, shifting past her defender and putting a cross towards goal. Haley found the end of the ball and tapped a shot towards goal, which now means she has secured career bests in goals (six), assists (eight) and points (20).
On the game’s fifth goal, redshirt junior forward Sam Tran sent a teasing ball into the box, and Malatskey sprinted past an unaware Oregon defender to realize her eighth goal of the year, good for second on the team.
Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Katie Meyer made one save for her third shutout of the season, and has now started three of the past four matches. A total of 20 Cardinal appeared in the match.
No. 2 Stanford returns to Cagan Stadium to challenge No. 22 UCLA (9-3-1, 3-2-0 Pac-12) next Saturday.
Contact Daniel Martinez-Krams at danielmk ‘at’ stanford.edu.