Sept. 27, 2009

Final Stats

BERKELEY - Behind three goals off of penalty corners from sophomore Erin Magill, the California field hockey team upset No. 13 Stanford, 4-3, and handed the Cardinal its first loss of the 2009 season. Junior Natalie Nurnberg scored the other goal for the Golden Bears. Cal improves to 3-5, 1-1 on the campaign, while the Cardinal fell to 8-1, 2-1.

"Good day for the corners, oh my gosh," head coach Shellie Onstead said. "That's one of those things that I've been thinking will get better and better as the year goes on. I said from the beginning of the year that Erin has a great hit and she's finally getting it on cage. Erin did her job."

Nurnberg got the scoring going early, as she tallied her goal in the second minute of the game. Nurnberg dribbled into the circle, right in front of the cage and was able to beat Stanford's keeper, Alessandra Moss, for the game's first score. Moss finished with one save on the afternoon. Nurnberg had two shots, but also had three assists on Magill's goals.

The Cardinal evened the score at one with its first goal eight minutes later. Xanthe Travlos was able to dribble around the Cal defenders at the top of the circle and beat Cal's Haleh Nourani to her left. Travlos led Stanford with four shots.

Kelsey Lloyd from Stanford scored to give the Cardinal its first lead of the day later in the half. Magill recorded the first of her three goals in the final 30 seconds of the first half to tie the game at two heading into halftime.

Stanford scored on a corner of its own at the outset of the second half to take a 3-2 lead. Becky Dru tallied the score with assists to Jaimee Erickson and Nora Soza.

That was all Stanford could muster as Magill converted on two more penalty corners to help the Bears garner the victory. Nurnberg and freshman Deanna Kennedy garnered the assists on all three of Magill's goals.

"They were really working today, especially on the first couple," Magill said about the penalty corners. "I think it was clutch that our forwards were getting corners. This is a huge win for us. It's the Stanford-Cal rivalry, so you always want to beat them. Since they were undefeated, it makes it even sweeter."

Stanford had six penalty corners to Cal's five. Stanford also outshot Cal, 9-7.

Cal heads back out on the road next week. The Bears will face Indiana on Saturday, Oct. 3, in Iowa at 1 p.m. (PT), Iowa on Sunday, Oct. 4, at noon (PT) and Northwestern on Tuesday, Oct. 6, at noon (PT).