Five Stanford teams came out on top this past weekend in dominant wins. Football ended their two-game losing streak out East with a win over Elon. Women’s volleyball made a comeback by winning three sets in a row after losing the first to NC State and field hockey ended their non-conference schedule with a win against UC Davis. Women’s golf won both the PlayForHer Stanford Intercollegiate team and individual titles by impressive margins.
Football
After two losses on the road, Stanford (3-4, 1-3 ACC) showed up for the reunion homecoming game against Elon University (4-4, 2-2 CAA) with a final score of 34-7. Both teams were scoreless in the first quarter after missed field goal attempts. Junior running back Micah Ford secured the first points of the game with a 1-yard plow through Elon’s defense at the start of the second quarter. Just two drives later, Ford scored again in a 7-yard run while breaking tackles.
In the third quarter, under pressure from Elon’s defense, sixth-year quarterback Davis Warren managed to successfully reach senior running back Sedrick Irvin in the end zone for a 27-yard pass. On the next drive, Ford recovered his own fumble and then dived over the pylon for his third touchdown of the day on a 5-yard run. The Phoenix stayed scoreless into the third quarter. In the fourth, Ford ran the ball 81 yards for his final touchdown, completely untouched by the Phoenix. Freshman running back Kamerin McDowell-Moore put the Phoenix on the board for the first time of the game with an 18-yard rush touchdown.
Ford’s four trips to the endzone tied the Cardinal’s record for most touchdowns per game. Eight players have also done so in the past, including the 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey in 2015.
Ending their losing streak, the Cardinal will hope to continue Saturday’s momentum into their Friday night game against NC State (3-3, 1-2 ACC) under the lights.
Women’s Volleyball
The No. 16 Cardinal (12-6, 5-3 ACC), honoring Breast Cancer Awareness Month with pink and white jerseys, beat NC State (12-7, 3-5 ACC) 3-1 on Sunday at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal lost their first set in a close 19-25, but ended the night with three victorious sets 25-11, 25-21 and 25-19, respectively.
Senior outside hitter Julia Blyashov captured a career high of 21 kills. Blyashov also had 12 digs, which, combined with her kills, makes this game her sixth double-double of the season. She also helped the team to victory with three blocks and one assist. Junior middle blocker Lizzy Andrew ended the night with 11 kills, six blocks and a career-high 6 digs. The Wolfpack’s freshman outside hitter Britni Silver led her team with 23 kills as well as nine digs, an ace and a block.
The Cardinal continue their winning streak at home (6-0). They’ll play against Duke on Friday in Durham.
Field Hockey
Stanford (9-5, 1-4 ACC) took down UC Davis (3-9, 0-0 MPSF) in a 2-0 win to cap off their non-conference schedule with an 8-1 record. The Cardinal previously beat the Aggies 4-1 this season in late September. The first half ended scoreless for both teams, but senior midfielder/forward Star Horlock broke the stalemate five minutes into the third quarter with a zipping shot into the back of the net. This killer backhanded shot marked her eighth goal of the season.
Senior midfielder Kate Nemec also reached the back of the goal off an assist by senior defender Puja Nanjappa in the last two minutes of the fourth. Junior goalkeeper Anya Jackson secured her second career shutout against the Aggies. The field hockey team will travel to the East Coast to play Syracuse on Friday afternoon.
Men’s Soccer
Cardinal Soccer (8-3-2, 1-3-2 ACC) kept the nation’s No. 1 team SMU (10-0-2, 5-0-2 ACC) scoreless in their 0-0 windy draw last Friday. The Mustangs lead the conference with 18.27 shots per game, but the Cardinal only gave them the opportunity for three shots.
Stanford answered with five shots of their own, with the best by senior forward Trevor Islam and sophomore midfielder/defender Jude Stone. Sadly, their shots both skimmed over the top of the crossbar. The Cardinal will meet NC State for their penultimate regular season match and last away game this Saturday.
Women’s Soccer
Crushing UC Berkeley (4-5-5, 1-3-2 ACC) on Senior Night last Friday, the No. 10 Cardinal (9-2-2, 3-2-1 ACC) fought hard for their 3-1 win. Before the game, the team honored senior midfielder Mia Bhuta, senior forward Erica Grilione, and fifth-year goalkeeper Rhiannon Stewart. Bhuta scored her first goal of the season in the ninth minute after a cross from freshman forward Ella Kral. In the last seconds of the first half, sophomore midfielder Y-Lan Nguyen delivered the ball into a box off of a free kick, and Grilione rocketed the ball into the back of the net. Kral intercepted a Cal pass, soared past defenders, and nailed a shot into the bottom left corner just three minutes into the second half. Cal’s senior defender Malia McMahon converted off a header on a corner kick in the 65th minute.
The Bears’ redshirt-junior keeper Alyssa Savig, a former Stanford player, finished the game with eight saves. The Cardinal will meet No. 1 University of North Carolina for a fierce match this Friday at Chapel Hill.
Men’s and Women’s Cross Country
Finishing off their regular season strong, Stanford cross country competed nearby in Sunnyvale for the Bronco Invitational. Freshman Marshall Vernon led the men’s 8k in 15th place overall with a personal best time of 24:04.9. Senior Quinn White followed close behind his teammate, crossing the finish line in 24:18.8 at 22nd place.
Senior Amelia Everett secured the first spot for the women’s 6k in 67th place with a personal best of 21:55.3. Sophomore Olivia Cieslak also put up a fast time of 22:02.4. Both teams will compete in ACC Championships next Friday in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Men’s Water Polo
Previously No. 1-ranked Cardinal water polo (13-2, 2-1 MPSF) fell to UC Berkeley this past Saturday in their second loss of the season. Junior driver Ben Forer scored the first goal for Stanford on a penalty to put the game at 1-2 with 42 seconds left in the first quarter, but the Bears got another goal right before the second. Junior attacker Botond Balogh also converted on another penalty in the second before the Bears ran off with a three-goal streak to make the game 6-2. Senior attacker Gavin West responded with a goal of his own to put the game at 6-3 going into halftime.
Cal earned another goal early in the second half. Freshman attacker Dimitris Chatzis scored with a minute left in the third quarter, which Cal answered with another goal. Redshirt-senior utility player Guido Leonardi cut the lead to 8-5 with a goal early in the fourth. The Bears scored again before Forer and Chatzis both got their second goals. The final score was 12-8, which the Cardinal will look to improve from when they play away at No. 10 Long Beach State on Friday and No. 8 UC San Diego on Saturday.
Women’s Golf
Stanford women’s golf had another dominant performance with a team win and individual medalist, all while raising $170k for breast cancer research through PlayForHer. This past weekend marked their third consecutive season win of their home tournament. The Cardinal shot 824 (-28), which was 19 strokes better than second-place Virginia (-9).
Junior Meja Örtengren put up a phenomenal performance, earning her third collegiate win. She finished the three days shooting a 199 (-14), which was the second-lowest 54-hole score by a woman on Stanford’s course. Junior Andrea Revuelta finished in second place with a 202 (-11), which gave Stanford the first two spots on the leaderboard for the second year in a row. Stanford will play their last tournament of the fall next week in Hawai’i for the Nanea Invitational. They have won the tournament the past two years, with Örtengren winning the individual title last year.
Men’s Golf
Cardinal men’s golf played at Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate, finishing sixth out of fourteen teams after the three-day tournament. Sophomore Edan Cui led Stanford with a fourth-place finish overall at eight under. Freshman Carlo Roman was the second-highest finisher, tying at 18th place for even par. The Cardinal will have a long hiatus from competition until Jan. 24th, when they play Oregon at The Vintage Club in Palm Springs, California.