STANFORD, Calif. — Kate Nemec and Ella Ganocy provided the offense while Daisy Ford racked up her second shutout of the season as the Stanford field hockey team battled Harvard to the brink, falling 3-2 (4-3 SO) to the No. 6 Crimson at Varsity Field Hockey Turf on Sunday.
“I think Harvard is a class team and can punish you, but I like what we displayed today,” said head coach Roz Ellis. “I loved our problem solving throughout each quarter and loved how aggressive we were on the press.”
Stanford, which spent much of Thursday’s match against Ball State on edge in the first quarter, came out as the aggressors on Sunday, nabbing the first goal of the game late in the quarter. Having stuck with the Crimson in the possession battle, Stanford found its break with Kate Nemec’s second goal of the season as she knifed through the Crimson defense and fired Stanford’s first shot of the day home to put the Cardinal ahead, 1-0.
With the Cardinal opening up the scoring, both sides took liberties in the second quarter, putting the goalkeepers to the test. Having been outshot 1-0 in the first quarter, Harvard looked poised to try and find the equalizer. However, Daisy Ford was up to the task, stopping the Crimson on both of its attempts on goal to keep Stanford in front.
“In Daisy we trust,” said Ellis. “We put her in some tough positions today but she is so poised between the pipes and electrifying with her saves and she is a huge asset to what we want to accomplish this year.”
Looking to find its footing, Harvard stormed out in the third quarter, earning its first of the afternoon just under five minutes into the frame as Sage Piekarski slotted home a fast break chance to level the scoreline. Nearing the end of the frame, Harvard grabbed its second chance of the day by earning a penalty stroke with 12 seconds to go. Though Ford was close to it, Harvard’s Tilly Butterworth slotted it past the senior goalkeeper to put the Crimson in front, 2-1.
“I love that the team knew the third quarter was not good and that they can be fatigued and put their hockey intelligence together to get results,” said Ellis. “I was really impressed with our poise to get back in the game. We pumped our outcomes and we got back in the game and kept Harvard from getting risky chances.
Having found its way through the game against Ball State, the Cardinal were steadfast into the fourth quarter, looking to nab the equalizing goal. With just one penalty…
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