Nov. 9, 2007

Complete Release in PDF Format

NCAA Tournament First Round

Stanford Cardinal (13-7, 5-1 NorPac)
at No. 1 North Carolina Tar Heels (20-0, 5-0 ACC)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 10, 2007
Site: Chapel Hill, N.C
Time: 8 a.m. PDT

Up Next
Stanford's reward for punching its ticket to the 2007 NCAA Tournament: a date with No. 1 North Carolina. Back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2000, Stanford (13-7, 5-1 NorPac) travels to Chapel Hill, N.C., to square off against North Carolina (20-0, 5-0 ACC) in the opening round. The four-time NCAA champion Tar Heels, the tournament¹s top seed, are the nation's only undefeated squad and have qualified for 23 NCAA Tournaments.

Last Time Here
Stanford, fresh off its first winning season since an 11-8 finish in 2001, is making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in school history. The Cardinal most recently qualified for the postseason in 2000, blanking Holy Cross 1-0 in a play-in game on the road before falling to top-ranked Old Dominion 6-1 in the opening round. The Cardinal owns an 0-7 combined mark in its previous NCAA Tournament appearances (1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1995 and 2000). The field includes 16 teams (five automatic bids, eight at-large berths and three play-in winners) competing in a single-elimination format.

Stanford Against The Top-25
Stanford has faced four top-20 squads this season, posting a 1-3 mark in such games. The lone victory came in the form of a 2-1 victory against No. 9 Boston College in the season opener back on Aug. 25. The Cardinal has also played No. 3 Wake Forest, No. 13 Louisville and No. 4 Michigan.

Lock Haven On Lock Down
After outscoring its opponents 11-2 en route to capturing the NorPac Tournament title, Stanford received a goal from freshman Xanthe Travlos and grinded out an opportunistic 1-0 victory over Lock Haven in an NCAA play-in game at the Varsity Turf. Only six shots combined (four from Lock Haven) were attempted by both sides in a hard-fought, tense first half. Both teams generated a few more scoring opportunities at the start of the second half but could not convert. At the 51:14 mark, Travlos put the Cardinal up 1-0 with her ninth goal of the year. During a scrum inside the circle, sophomore Rachel Mozenter tapped a pass to Travlos, who beat Lady Eagle keeper Erin Terreson top-shelf with a quick shot into the cage. Lock Haven outshot Stanford 12-7 while the Cardinal owned a 4-3 edge in penalty corners, a department that has been the club's strength all season long. Madison Bell posted her fourth shutout of the year.

Cardinal Snaps Streak Against California
Stanford recorded its first 12-win campaign and conference tournament championship since 2000, thanks to a 3-1 victory over rival California to claim the NorPac Tournament title on its home turf. Saturday¹s win over California was even sweeter considering the Golden Bears entered the contest having won 18 straight in the series, a stretch that dated back to a 1-0 Stanford shutout on Oct. 6, 2001. However, Stanford had been close to snapping the streak on several occasions. Of the 18 losses, 12 were decided by one goal and five of the defeats occurred in overtime. Three of the setbacks took place in the conference tournament title game.The Cardinal continued to play solid defense in the second half though, turning away Golden Bear scoring opportunities.

A Season Of Firsts
Stanford's impressive season has included a number of program milestones, including: € first winning season since an 11-8 finish back in 2001 € 13 wins are tied for the second-best total in school history € captured first conference tournament championship since 2000 € advanced to NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2000 € cracked the national rankings for the first time since 2001 € best start to the season (6-0) since 1979

Stanford Well-Represented In NorPac Voting
Stanford was well-represented with several players earning all-conference recognition at the annual NoPac awards banquet. Senior Jess Zutz capped her stellar career with an Offensive Player of the Year honor, freshman Camille Gandhi was recognized for an impressive debut season as the Rookie of the Year while four other members of the squad were honored as well. In addition, Lesley Irvine was named NorPac Coach of the Year after guiding the Cardinal to its best season in six years. Lesley Irvine was honored as the NorPac Coach of the Year after guiding Stanford to a 6-0 start and a share of the regular-season conference title. Under Irvine's direction, the Cardinal broke into the national rankings for the first time since 2001 and now stands one victory shy of clinching the program¹s first winning season in six years. Sophomore Rachel Bush was this year¹s recipient of Julie Nagle Extraordinary Teammate award, given annually to the sophomore who shows extraordinary care and support of her teammates, genuine love for the sport and her academic institution, possesses a great spirit and has deep appreciation for life and those around her.

Rookie Recognition
Stanford's success this season has been due in large part to a pair of freshmen making immediate impacts. Camille Gandhi was tabbed the NorPac Rookie of the Year for her efforts, as she ranks fourth on the squad with six goals to go along with five assists, 17 points and 35 shots. Gandhi has started every match for the Cardinal this year and recorded her first multi-goal game in a win over Pacific on Sept. 2. Fellow rookie Xanthe Travlos has been just as impressive, tallying nine goals, five assists and leading the team with 71 shots while making 20 starts. She claimed a spot on the All-NorPac First Team.