As the clock wound down in the second half, ticking away crucial seconds that Cal needed to score an equalizer, midfielder Ariana Martinez knew that her team needed a goal.
Martinez slotted a ball through the Stanford defensive line for forward Ifeoma Onumonu to run. Onumonu cut around the Cardinal goalkeeper and ripped a long shot from the right side of the box, which soared toward an open goal.
The ball ricocheted off the crossbar and deflected out of bounds.
Such chances defined the No. 13 Cal women’s soccer team’s matchup against No. 1 Stanford on Sunday afternoon at Edwards Stadium.
The Bears (15-5-0, 8-3-0 Pac-12) fell behind early but maintained offensive dominance against the Cardinal (17-1-1, 11-0). None of the chances translated into goals, and the Bears fell 1-0.
The match wrapped up conference play, and Stanford emerged with a perfect conference record and the Pac-12 title.
“It is devastating,” said Cal goalkeeper Emily Kruger. “When you are so close and all you need is that goal and you just can’t put it in the back of the net it is really unfortunate.”
The Bears played most of the game from behind after the Cardinal scored just three minutes into the game. Stanford’s Chioma Ubogagu took the ball up the flank and crossed it into Courtney Verloo at the top of the box.
“She literally hit a volley up into the roof of the goal,” said Kruger. “I couldn’t even see it, it came so fast.”
With eight minutes left in the first half, Cal midfielder Grace Leer got the ball at the top of the Stanford box, split two defenders and fired a shot on goal. The ball hit the crossbar.
The Bears came out with that same fire in the second half, fighting tooth and nail for a goal to tie the game.
“We showed character through the rest of the game, especially in the last half we were taking it to them and clearly the better team,” said senior forward Lauren Battung.
Midway through the second half, Onumonu had another near-goal when a cross came in from the left side to Onumonu on the right. She ripped another shot, but sent it sailing just wide.
“It is always tough when you see your team hit the post three times on clear breakaways and clear numbers-up situations,” Battung said. “Sometimes teams just need luck, and we just didn’t get that luck today.”
Later in the half, the Bears earned three corner kicks in a row, all of which resulted in a near goal. The final of the three resulted in the closest chance, when forward Rachel Mercik’s header fell wide.
“We had chance after chance and we were unlucky,” said Kruger. “We were doing everything we could and they were just throwing their bodies in front of the ball.”
Stanford earned an automatic bid and the Bears have likely earned a spot in the NCAA tournament. The selection show will air on Monday afternoon.
“That was by far one of the most exciting games we’ve had,” said Kruger. “They brought it, we brought it, it was exactly what I would have hoped, except we would have liked to get the win.”
Comment Policy
Comments should remain on topic, concerning the article or blog post to which they are connected. Brevity is encouraged. Posting under a pseudonym is discouraged, but permitted. The Daily Cal encourages readers to voice their opinions respectfully in regard to the readers, writers and contributors of The Daily Californian. Comments are not pre-moderated, but may be removed if deemed to be in violation of this policy. Click here to read the full comment policy.