CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Stanford (5-1, 0-2 ACC) suffered it's second conference loss of the season on Sunday afternoon, dropping a 5-1 road contest to the third-ranked Virginia Cavaliers.
Cara Sambeth notched the lone goal for the Cardinal with assists from Jenny O'Grady and Star Horlock, while Daisy Ford secured a season-high 7 saves in the loss.
"I think we need to continue to focus on how we outlet the ball and the speed in which we're moving it. Some big things we need to add is joining the counterattack, and moving forward must be two gears faster," head coach Roz Ellis said.
"When we did that in the third quarter, we scored in the first minute so they know how to do it. We spiraled a bit in the last six minutes, but I don't 5-1 reflects how we performed at all"
Virginia broke through early in the game, rattling the cage on their first penalty corner opportunity with the shot from Jans Croon. The Cavaliers' Noa Boterman doubled the score in the second frame with a one-timer from just inside the circle's edge to give Virginia a two-goal lead at the break.
The Cardinal came out with a lot of energy to start the second half, dominating the offensive possession in the third quarter, which led to the Sambeth goal off a penalty corner chance to bring Stanford within one.
Virginia would reclaim control in the fourth quarter, though, scoring three goals in the final fifteen minutes to put the game out of reach.
"We need to recognize when we have a team on the ropes," Ellis added. "UVA is a wonderful squad but when we draw within one there in the third quarter, we need to keep our foot on the throttle. We spiraled a bit in the last six minutes, but I don't 5-1 reflects how we performed at all"
Stanford will now enjoy a bye week before returning home to host North Carolina (Oct. 4) and Duke (Oct. 6) at Varsity Field Hockey Turf.