Oct. 14, 2007

Box Score

STANFORD, Calif. - No. 11 California almost dug itself out of a hole, but in the end lost to No. 1 Stanford, 4-2, Sunday afternoon in both teams' Pac-10 opener at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium. The Golden Bears dropped to 8-3 overall (0-1 Pac-10), while the Cardinal improved to 10-1-1 (1-0 Pac-10).

"Stanford deserved to win today," said Cal head coach Neil McGuire, whose team beat then-No. 1 Santa Clara, 2-0, in its last outing Sept. 30. "We played very poorly in the first half and Stanford took full advantage. We can and will overcome this."

Ali Riley scored in the second minute to give the Cardinal a 1-0 lead. Cal freshman Alex Morgan had an excellent chance to tie the game, but Stanford goalkeeper Kira Maker made a diving save to her right to knock the ball away from the goal. Morgan, who leads Cal with 10 points and five goals this season, topped the Bears with two shots today.

Kelley O'Hara and Lizzy George netted goals in the 34th and 35th minutes, respectively, to send Stanford into the locker room ahead, 3-0, at the half.

Cal played much better in the second half, outscoring Stanford, 2-1, and outshooting the Cardinal, 7-6, over the final 45 minutes. Overall, Stanford held a 15-9 edge in shots and both teams launched eight shots on goal.

Stanford extended its lead to 4-0 when Kristin Stannard converted a penalty kick in the 59th minute. After that, Cal did its best to rally against its local rival. Cal junior forward Valerie Barnes, who made her return today after missing five games with a knee injury, posted her second goal of the season in the 73rd minute to bring the Bears to within 4-1.

Sophomore midfielder Katie Oakes tallied her second goal of the season, as well, off a pass from Barnes to close the gap to 4-2. However, that was as close as the Bears could get.

Prior to today's game, Cal owned two wins and a tie over Stanford in the teams' last three meetings.

Cal looks to regroup at home against USC Friday, Oct. 19, at 3:30 p.m. at Edwards Stadium.

Women's Soccer Result
		1	2		F
No. 11 Cal	0	2	--	2
No. 1 Stanford	3	1	--	4

Scoring Summary
Stanford	Ali Riley (Kelley O'Hara)	             1:15
Stanford	Kelley O'Hara (Christen Press)	33:46
Stanford	Lizzy George (April Wall)	34:24
Stanford	Kristin Stannard (Penalty Kick)	58:50
California	Valerie Barnes 			72:00
California	Katie Oakes (Valerie Barnes)	83:25

Shots: Cal 9 (Alex Morgan 2), Stanford 15 (Kelley O'Hara 4).
Shots on Goal: Cal 8 (Alex Morgan 2), Stanford 8 (Kelley O'Hara 3).
Saves: Cal 4 (Gina Pellegrini 4), Stanford 6 (Kira Maker 6).
CK: Cal 3, Stanford 1.
Fouls: Cal 7, Stanford 9.
Offsides: Cal 0, Stanford 1.
Yellow Cards: Cal none, Stanford (Marisa Abegg 81:53).
Red Cards: none.
Records: Cal 8-3 (0-1 Pac-10), Stanford 10-1-1 (1-0 Pac-10)
Attendance: 717.