STANFORD, Calif. – Haley Mossmer had herself a Senior Day moment to remember on Sunday afternoon, netting the go-ahead goal to cap off a comeback 4-3 victory over California in the home finale for the 2023 campaign. The Cardinal improves to 3-8 on the year, while California falls to a 4-6 mark.
"It feels amazing, especially with it being Senior Day. We really came into this game we wanted to leave it all on the field," Mossmer said following the game. "Of course, it's a rivalry game and it felt amazing to put away the game-winning goal, but I'm just really proud of our team's effort and fight."
In addition to Mossmer's goal, Star Horlock tallied her first multi-goal game of her career. Gemma Townsend also found the back of the net for the second straight game, adding to her team-leading goal total with five now on the year. Townsend and Maroussia Walckiers added assists in the contest, while Daisy Ford and Kendall Dowd combined for seven saves between the posts.
"Coming off a few losses, I think we've really come together as a group and have spoken about what it means to be a team and how we reflect that on the field," Horlock said. "Today, we went out with a 'give it everything' mentality and we worked with each other and for each other today."
Townsend kicked off the scoring for Stanford, cleaning up a rebound off a penalty corner to jump out to a 1-0 lead, but the Golden Bears would score three unanswered to carry a 3-1 lead into the break.
Coming out of the break, Stanford made the necessary adjustments and dominated the second half offensively. Horlock made it a tie ballgame with two consecutive goals before Mossmer rattled the back of the cage for the go-ahead winner off a Maroussia Walckiers feed.
Speaking post game about the adjustments the team made after Friday's road loss to California, head coach Roz Ellis praised her athletes for analyzing their mistakes and making the necessary corrections in today's effort.
"This year has been a year of growth for sure, but I'm really proud of the team for understanding the areas we needed to improve after Friday's loss." Ellis said. "We talked about the type of communication we need when we're in those deficits. We needed to be very direct and very purposeful so that everyone responds, and our team bought into that. Today was our best game in terms of trusting how consistent we can play, even with those mistakes. We fought back after each setback and had more of an ambush attack, and I think that effort was absolutely what got us the win."
Sunday's win capped off Stanford's Senior Day celebration, as Caroline Guden and Haley Mossmer were recognized for their careers and the impact they brought to the program. The duo has combined for 28 wins in their career as well as an America East title and NCAA Elite Eight berth in 2020.
"[The seniors] have really held down the fort as the upperclassmen, and that can be a lot of responsibility, but they have taken it in stride," coach Ellis said. "They're pushing the underclassmen towards what our program needs, and I couldn't have asked for two better leaders this year."
Stanford now prepares for four straight road contests to close out the regular season, beginning next weekend with Vermont on Friday at 11 a.m. PT and UAlbany on Sunday at 9 a.m. PT.