After a tight, hard-fought match, Stanford women’s soccer (5-3-1, 4-1-0 Pac-12) tied the University of Oregon (5-3-3, 3-2-1 Pac-12) with a final score of 0-0. Although the Cardinal dominated the first 25 minutes and ended up outshooting the Ducks, they couldn’t put it away to clutch the victory.
The Cardinal came out strong, maintaining possession and securing solid looks. Stanford had amassed six shots compared to Oregon’s one through 25 minutes of play.
However, momentum soon changed as Oregon began to find its rhythm. Stanford was forced to play more aggressively, with freshman forward Samantha Williams picking up a yellow card in the 35th minute.
The best opportunity of the half for the Cardinal came with two minutes left. A low cross allowed senior forward Jojo Harbor to have a nice shot on goal, but the shot went just wide.
The Cardinal player with the most shots on the afternoon was sophomore midfielder Maya Doms, who made a major impact on offense with four strikes, three of which were on goal. Also critical was redshirt junior forward Civana Kuhlmann, who played 91 minutes and had three shots.
Although there were plenty of opportunities, neither team was able to find the back of the net in the second half. The closest opportunity came in the 60th minute. Although Cardinal sophomore Katie Meyer only had two saves, she had the moment of the match when she dove to block an incredible shot from Ducks sophomore forward Ally Cook.
With the teams being sent to overtime, fitness was a key component throughout the game. An impressive six players from the Cardinal roster were able to play all 110 minutes of the match: senior midfielder Belle Briede, freshman forward Sarah Paulson, senior defender Kiki Pickett, redshirt sophomore defender Sierra Enge, sophomore defender Kennedy Wesely and, of course, Meyer.
Overall, Stanford had the upper hand throughout overtime, securing five of its 18 total shots. Oregon, on the other hand, only had one shot in overtime, finishing the game with 11 total shots, two of which were on goal (compared to Stanford’s nine).
Stanford will continue to practice finishing as they take on Arizona on Friday, April 2. Fans will be able to stream the match at pac-12.com. Kick-off is set for 8:00 p.m. P.T.