This past Saturday, the No. 11 Stanford women’s lacrosse team (3-0) took on No. 10 Ohio State (4-1) in Columbus, Ohio. The Cardinal earned their second straight victory over a top-15 team with a 12-10 win against the Buckeyes.
Ohio State and Stanford stood in very similar national positions before the matchup, with both having many veteran players return from last season. This win was key for the Cardinal to enhance their national standing as they begin to approach conference play.
Sophomore attacker Kelsey Murray led the offense with five goals, bringing her total to 11 in Stanford’s first three games. This figure tied her career-high, earned in the team’s season opener against Fresno State, and made her the first Stanford player since to score five goals in multiple games in the same season since 2012.
Stanford scored 12 goals on 24 shots, a great conversion rate. Alongside Murray, junior midfielder Lucy Dikeou scored two goals, three assists and three draw controls. Fifth-year senior attacker Rachel Ozer converted one goal and two assists. Ozer had a clutch free-position goal to break a 6-6 tie with about 10 minutes left in the first half.
Senior midfielder Hannah Farr scored one goal and one assist against the Buckeyes. Last week, she was selected for the watch list for the Tewaaraton Award, placing her among 50 top women in collegiate lacrosse who were chosen. Farr’s talents have already earned her considerable recognition, including last year’s Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Player of the Year and a spot as captain for the Cardinal this season.
As in the Notre Dame game, the Stanford team defense was a key reason for its success. The squad held Ohio State’s Katie Chase, the nation’s leading scorer entering the week with 18 goals, to just one goal and two assists in the game. The week prior, the Cardinal defense, notably junior defender Adrienne Anderson, shut down Notre Dame All-American Cortney Fortunato, who failed to get on the board. The Stanford defense held two of the nation’s best scorers to just one goal overall.
Defensively, freshman goalie Allie DaCar made a career-high nine saves against the 26 shots from the Ohio State Buckeyes. Meanwhile, fellow classmate midfielder Kelly Myers controlled four key draws.
The Cardinal remain on the road for their next three games, starting with Vanderbilt at 9 a.m. on Sunday.
Contact Kristina Bassi at kbassi ‘at’ stanford.edu.