Stanford women’s soccer is headed to the round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament after taking down Sacramento State and Santa Clara in two very different games over the weekend.

After more than 30 shots, Stanford was able to break through for a goal against Sacramento State in Friday’s tournament opener. Freshman Sidney Payne knocked in the winning score and assisted on two later goals for the top-seeded Cardinal, while classmate and goalkeeper Emily Oliver secured the 3-0 shutout. All of Stanford’s goals-Payne’s, along with two more from freshman Taylor McCann and sophomore Nina Watkins-came from freshmen or players off the bench.

Stanford (20-0-2) had more than its share of chances in the first half, when the Cardinal outshot the Hornets (9-10-1) by a margin of 19-2. But for every look that Stanford had, it either just missed the mark or was turned away by Hornet keeper Savannah Abercrombie.

Stanford coach Paul Ratcliffe, who led Stanford over Sacramento State by a score of 7-0 in 2007, had nothing but praise for the Hornets’ defensive tenacity.

“I was very impressed with Sacramento State; I think [head coach] Randy [Dedini] organized his team with a great game plan,” he said. “Their team really battled hard and made it a really tough game, and obviously their goalkeeper was really tremendous in the first half and in the second half. She made some spectacular saves.”

It took an unusual play for the Cardinal to finally break through. In the 65th minute, sophomore defender Rachel Quon sent a cross from the right side into the box, where Payne made a quick spin move before tapping it past Abercrombie with a back-heel. For Payne, who was subbed in just a few minutes earlier, it was the second goal of her freshman season. Along with Quon, junior defender Camille Levin was credited with an assist.

The goal came in a flash, and Payne said she relied mostly on instinct to make the game-winning reaction.

“I think I hit it with my back-heel,” she said. “I just tried to make contact and get the goal.”

Ratcliffe was happy to defend his choice of substituting Payne, who he says has been making great strides in practice.

“Sydney’s been training very, very well, and she’s been getting better and better as a player,” he said. “I knew she could go in and score the goal; there was no doubt in my mind that she could break the ice for us, and she did.”

With eight minutes to go, McCann knocked in some insurance for Stanford. After recovering a Payne rebound in the box amidst a flurry of defenders, McCann powered a shot that deflected off a sliding Hornet defender into the right side of the goal.

A few minutes later, after knocking a centering pass onto the box, Watkins fired a header from a few yards out to beat Abercrombie on the left side. It was the first goal of Watkins’ collegiate career.

“It’s great to have players that can come in, especially freshmen, and have a big impact and score goals for us,” Ratcliffe said. “It’s great for the team spirit, and it’s a credit to the freshmen that they’ve worked so hard this year and been so tremendous for us.”

The tournament continued as the Card took on local rival Santa Clara (13-7-2) on Sunday afternoon in a rematch of last year’s hard-fought Sweet Sixteen matchup. Tensions were high, and the game was full of pressure and physicality, but in the end, Stanford managed to defeat the Broncos, 2-1, and secure its place in the next round of the tournament.

Stanford started the game on the attack and kept the pressure on, resulting in an early goal. In the 19th minute, redshirt freshman Annie Case drove down the left side before sending in a pinpoint cross to Marjani Hing-Glover. The forward, who was in the starting lineup with sophomore Courtney Verloo out due to injury, expertly timed her jump and hit a crisp, left-footed volley past Santa Clara goalkeeper Bianca Henninger from the top of the box.

“I wanted to prove myself and show what I can do.” Hing-Glover said.

“Marjani had a great weekend,” said senior forward Christen Press. “We call her shot “the ‘Jani Rocket,” and it just rocketed right into the net.”

Stanford remained the aggressor, but Santa Clara was still very much in the game. The Broncos only had two shots in the first half, but Meleana Shim’s free kick off the crossbar was a warning. Both teams played very physically, riddling the field with free kicks and falling players. In the 15th minute, Press was taken down by Santa Clara defender Margueritte Aozasa, who grabbed Press’s ponytail and yanked her to the turf. Despite the high pressure, Stanford kept the score at 1-0 at the half.

Just four minutes into the second half, it was 2-0 in favor of the Cardinal. Junior Lindsay Taylor swung in a corner kick, and sophomore center back Alina Garciamendez beat her marker to power a low header into the net. It was the first goal of the season for the Mexican national teamer, and it would prove to be vital.

Despite dominant play from Stanford after the second goal, the game’s next goal was scored by Santa Clara. Kendra Perry received the ball at the top of the box, turned and hit a low left-footed drive past Oliver into the corner of the goal. Just like that, Santa Clara had a lifeline.

“We had a lot of chances,” Ratcliffe said. “We didn’t execute, and their goalkeeper made some great saves. We let them hang around, and they scored a goal late, and it became a game.”

The goal shifted the momentum, and Stanford went from cruise control to hanging on. Stanford’s defense was able to hold on, preserving the 2-1 victory and a spot in the Sweet Sixteen.

The Cardinal will host UCLA in the round of 16 at 7 p.m. on Friday at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium.

— Sam Svoboda contributed to this report.