April 12, 2009

Box Score

STANFORD, Calif. - California lost to No. 14/15 Stanford, 13-4, on Sunday at Cagan Stadium. Junior midfielder Alex Tickner led the Golden Bears with two goals. Senior attacker Sam Price and junior attacker Catie O'Mahoney each scored once. Stanford's victory clinched the top seed and a first-round bye in the upcoming MPSF Championship tournament for the Cardinal, while Cal is still in the hunt for the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. The Bears' record fell to 5-10 (3-2 MPSF). Stanford improved to 9-3 (6-0 MPSF).

"Stanford did a great job," Cal head coach Theresa Sherry said. "I think they're a very good team. They've really had a great year. Usually, that doesn't matter. On paper, that doesn't matter - who's supposed to win or what the rankings are - in a Cal-Stanford competition. But I think we let the game get away today. From the beginning we didn't have the fire that we needed and we never really made a change as a group. I think we played individually all over the field, and that really hurt us today."

Cal junior midfielder Alyse Kennedy nabbed a game-high four ground balls and a game-high tying three draw controls. Bears senior goalkeeper Morgan Dyson made five saves in the first half. Sophomore teammate Allie Shropshire made eight saves in the second half.

Karen Nesbitt and Sarah Flynn each scored hat tricks for the Cardinal, which also got three points (2 goals, 1 assist each) from Lauren Schmidt and Claire Hubbard. Schmidt also had three draw controls. Goalie Annie Read made eight saves in a complete-game effort for Stanford, which outshot Cal, 36-18.

Cal hosts Oregon in its final regular-season home game at 3 p.m. on April 17 at Memorial Stadium. If Cal defeats the Ducks, the Bears would also need Denver (9-6, 3-2 MPSF) to lose to winless Fresno State on April 13 in order to earn the No. 2 seed in the MPSF tournament. If Denver does not lose to the Bulldogs and ties Cal with a 4-2 conference record, the Pioneers' head-to-head win over Cal (11-10 on March 28 in Denver) would give them the No. 2 seed.

The No. 2 seed will play the No. 7 seed - either Fresno State (0-9, 0-5 MPSF, one conference game remaining) or Saint Mary's (2-8, 1-4 MPFS, one conference game remaining). The No. 3 seed will play the No. 6 seed - either Fresno State or Saint Mary's.

GAME SUMMARY

	         1	2	F
California	3	1	4
Stanford	         9	4	13

California Scoring
Goals: Alex Tickner 2; Sam Price 1; Catie O'Mahoney 1. Assists: None.

Stanford Scoring
Goals: Nesbitt, Karen 3; Flynn, Sarah 3; Schmidt, Lauren 2; Hubbard, Claire 2; Foard, Leslie 2; Schwab, Amanda 1. Assists: Siegfried, Bess 2; Hubbard, Claire 1; Lindsay, Dana 1; Schmidt, Lauren 1.

Goalkeeping
California: Morgan Dyson, 5 saves, 9 GA, 30:00; Allie Shropshire, 8 saves, 4 GA, 30:00. Stanford: Annie Read, 8 saves, 4 GA, 60:00.

Records: Stanford 9-3 (6-0 MPSF). California 5-10 (3-2 MPSF).

Att.: 325.