Midweek Tilt With Davis

STANFORD, Calif. — Having battled hard against No. 1 Northwestern last week, Stanford field hockey returns to the pitch to take on UC Davis for the second game of a three-game homestand on Tuesday, September 22. First strike against the Aggies for Stanford’s Mental Health Awareness Match is slated for 6 p.m. PT. 

FIRST STRIKE

The Cardinal heads back out on Varsity Turf having suffered its first loss of the season last week, falling to No.1 Northwestern 3-1 last Thursday. Anya Jackson led the way between the posts with a career-high 12 saves while Summer Knight-Thompson secured her third goal of the season, scoring for consecutive games for the first time in her career. 

The Cardinal showed well against the No. 1 Wildcats, pushing the nation’s top team to a scoreless deadlock through 30 minutes before Knight-Thompson’s breakthrough just under a minute into the second half. However, two third-quarter strikes from the visitors and just the second penalty corner goal conceded by Stanford this season occurring in the fourth quarter gave Northwestern the win. 

Star Horlock and Natalie Hoppe co-lead the Cardinal in points this season with nine on the campaign following successful road trips two weeks ago. Hoppe recorded five points over the weekend in Massachusetts via a 1-3-5 line while Horlock has nine points via a 4-1-9 line after tallying consecutive game-winning goals as she leads the team with four of them this season. 

Jenny O’Grady, Ella Ganocy, and Summer Knight-Thompson slot tied for second on the team in goals (3) with the former earning her first collegiate brace in the win over Holy Cross while posting a new single-season high in goals with three. Hoppe continues to lead the team in helpers with five on the campaign while Caroline Richard and Grace Essalih slot second with two on the season. In total, 12 Cardinal have recorded a point this season while nine players have secured a goal. 

Defensively, three Cardinal have started all five games with Mia Clark leading the Cardinal in minutes played with 347 while Puja Nanjappa slots just behind Clark and Hoppe in minutes played. Stanford’s penalty corner defense has showed strong this season as the Cardinal is 25-for-27 on penalty corner clearances. Between the posts, Anya Jackson has earned the start and decision in each of the seven games this season, recording her first collegiate shutout in the win over Holy Cross. 

Jackson has posted a new career high in wins (6) while recording a 1.04 goals-against average coupled with a .811 save percentage. Jackson earned a career-high 12 saves in the loss to Northwestern, becoming the third goalkeeper to record 12 saves in a game since the 2019 season (Kelsey Bing: 2019, Daisy Ford: 2025).

Stanford’s bout against the Aggies marks the 32nd meeting all-time between the two programs with Stanford holding a 28-3 advantage in the series. Stanford has posted shutout wins in the last two meetings including taking last season’s outing at Varsity Turf, 3-0.