In a match under the stars, No. 7 Stanford women’s soccer (17-2-2, 9-1-1 Pac-12) defeated San Jose State University (8-7-7, 6-3-2 Mountain West) by a score of 6-0 in what is hopefully the first of many matches this NCAA tournament.
Led by freshman midfielder Jasmine Aikey – who scored four goals in the match – the Cardinal were easily able to beat the Spartans because of their efficient and quick-paced offense.
Despite the lofty final score, the scoreline remained 0-0 throughout the first 30 minutes of the match. With their 14 shots, as opposed to SJSU’s zero, Stanford was clearly dominating offensively on the pitch, but they still couldn’t find the back of the net.
Knocking at the door, the Cardinal found their first in the 31st minute. A left-footed volley from Aikey darted towards the upper left corner of the net, giving Stanford the 1-0 advantage.
Just three minutes later, the Cardinal were back at it. With fancy footwork in the box, redshirt sophomore forward Catherine Paulson earned a penalty kick after a harsh tackle from San Jose senior midfielder Kiana Miyazato. With Miyazato awarded the yellow, Stanford senior midfielder Maya Doms stepped up to take the kick. Equipped with the confidence only a seasoned senior can possess, Doms calmly slotted the ball into the bottom left corner, putting the Cardinal up to a two-goal lead.
Heading into halftime, Stanford undoubtedly had the upper hand. With 14 shots and eight corners – as opposed to the Spartan’s respective zero and zero – it was only a matter of time before Stanford claimed the landslide victory.
Leading the team was Aikey, who scored her second goal just four minutes into the second half. Hustling for the spilled ball of a deflected shot, the freshman earned the header rebound to put the Cardinal up 3-0.
However, Aikey was not done. Just two minutes later, she found the back of the net once more! A slick pass from junior forward Samantha Williams found the feet of the freshman, who subsequently earned her eighth goal of the season.
In what was seemingly magic, the sixth-ranked recruit refused to stop there. After an offside goal, which was consequently called back, Aikey proved she could do it once more. A cheeky turn and quick finish put the Cardinal up 5-0 and earned Aikey her fourth goal and final of the match.
Within the first 10 minutes of the second half, Stanford had widened their lead by three goals. Aikey, who had one in the first half, had earned herself a double brace.
Within the match, 21 Cardinal players found minutes, including freshman forward Logan Smith who earned her second goal of her Stanford career by rebounding her own deflected shot, helping Stanford finish on top, 6-0.
While this marked the end of the scoring for the match, the Cardinal have just begun as they next take on No. 15 BYU (10-2-6, 6-0-3 WCC) in their second challenge on the road to the NCAA championships.