Oct. 10, 2012

No. 13 Stanford Cardinal (9-4, 3-0 NorPac)
vs.
No. 1 Syracuse Orange (12-0, 4-0 Big EAST)
Date: Friday, Oct. 12
Time: 1 p.m. PT
Site: Amherst, MA

No. 13 Stanford Cardinal (9-4, 3-0 NorPac)
at
No. 4 Connecticut Huskies (13-0, 4-0 Big EAST)
Date: Sunday, Oct. 14
Time: 10 a.m. PT
Site: Storrs, CT

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

STANFORD, Calif.- Playing the No. 1 team in the country is always a challenge. But seldom do you get three shots.

That's the position Stanford (9-4, 3-0 NorPac) finds itself in this weekend. Having already played top-ranked Maryland and North Carolina earlier in the season, the Cardinal travels to Amherst, Mass., on Friday for a neutral-site game against No. 1 Syracuse before playing at No. 4 Connecticut on Sunday.

Not that third-year head coach Tara Danielson minds. A feisty, cutting-edge technician and tactician who has guided the Cardinal to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, she intentionally toughened up the schedule to help her players gain experience against elite programs. She brainstormed with assistants Steve Danielson, her husband and a member of the 1996 USA Olympic Field Hockey Team, and Patrick Cota.

"This school has never won an NCAA game, why?" Danielson said. "I started researching for answers. We tried to figure out from a skill component, to physiology, from soup to nuts. We're looking at everything we have control over. How do we improve? One of those things is scheduling. How can they play an NCAA game with the top 16 teams in the country? There's only one way: You have to play the top 16 teams in the country if you plan on winning a game."

So Danielson scheduled the best. This year, Stanford has already faced five top-25 teams, going 2-3. That includes a tough early-season 3-2 loss to defending national champion Maryland in double-overtime, and a 6-2 defeat to North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Now come Syracuse and Connecticut, the lone unbeaten teams in the country. The highest-ranked Stanford has ever defeated was No. 3 Michigan State back on Aug. 31, 2001.

"You start with, `Hey, this is a great opportunity,' " said Danielson, a 1994 graduate of Massachusetts, who trained and competed for the USA Field Hockey Team from 1998 to 2005, and saw action in 89 international contests. "But I would be amiss to just claim it an opportunity. The girls have worked hard enough in the off-season; have honed their skills; and have been focused. So to just look at it as an opportunity would not recognize the team for all their hard work."

"We humbly know these teams are very good. Both Syracuse and Connecticut have legacies over the past decade. But it's an opportunity for us to rise and start to play Stanford's brand of hockey, which the girls have been working on diligently for the last year and a half. That is what we're most excited about. I feel the girls are in a good position to rise to the occasion and show what we have."

What exactly is the Cardinal "brand" of hockey?

"Everyone on the field touches the ball," Danielson said. "We move the ball with pace and let the ball do the work. We move it left to right. If you shut down this portion of our game or this person, then we're going to let it go to somebody else. We rely on the 11 that are on the field to work cooperatively to understand when we have momentum or when we have no numbers up. We can attack from any angle and defend. We play as a team on defense and we play as a team on attack. What is special about this team is we're not relying on one or two people."

Danielson's team is young, and features 12 freshmen and sophomores. Senior defender Becky Dru from Buckinghamshire, England, was a Longstreth/NFHCA First Team All-American last year and is the team captain, while senior attacker Emily Henriksson from Los Angeles is the vice-captain.

"Becky comes with a wealth of experience," said Danielson. "Her hockey IQ is very high and she leads from the back. Emily is a very hard worker and provides the passion and will to succeed. She's a glowing example of knowing and believing what can be done and pushes the team in that direction."

"From there, we could go in any direction. We have multiple scorers and good leadership in the backfield, and that's what I'm excited about. Literally, I could name five, six, seven players that are contributing equally to our team."

The Cardinal already has victories against No. 10 Iowa and No. 18 Drexel this season and is 3-0 in NorPac play. Last year, the team earned its first-ever at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, but will probably need to capture the conference crown and a play-in game to advance again next month. Of course, beating No. 1 Syracuse or No. 4 Connecticut won't hurt, either.

"You don't come to Stanford and the Home of Champions if you aren't driven," said Danielson, who led the Cardinal to a 15-6 record in 2010, and a 17-6 mark last year. "One of the reasons why I chose Stanford was because of the student-athlete that was here. I said, `Well, there's room for growth instantly.' I want to be a part of that and see what I can do."

Two regular-season home games remain at the Varsity Turf: October 19 against Pacific, and October 23 against Cal.

Why should you consider coming out to watch what is believed to be Stanford's oldest varsity sport?

"Because it's a brilliant game!" beamed Danielson. "There's no off-sides and less whistles. In some ways, it's a great mix between soccer and ice hockey. The skill components are very technical, like hockey, and some of the tactics are similar to hockey. What makes field hockey special is the ball moves very, very quickly."

- by Mark Soltau

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

For more behind-the-scenes Stanford Athletics features, be sure to visit the Buck/Cardinal Clubhouse at www.buckcardinal.com.