COLLEGE STATION, Texas “”mdash; By the time Stanford’s junior forward Christen Press squared up her shot, the UCLA defense was still scrambling to get into formation.
The Bruins had already battled back earlier from a 1-0 deficit to send the game into overtime, but a little more than three minutes in, they found themselves in a vulnerable position, one Cardinal goal away from an early College Cup exit.
And in one swooping motion, Press fired one into the lower left of the far post, and it was all over.
On a crisp and chilly Friday evening at Aggie Soccer Stadium, Press’ golden goal in the fourth minute of overtime dealt UCLA a heartbreaking 2-1 loss that sent the Bruins packing and launched the Cardinal to a finals meeting with defending champion North Carolina, who once again proved their dominance, defeating Stanford 1-0 Sunday morning.
It was another piercing blow to a program that has yet to win a national title, but at least on Friday, it was a hard-fought match, the Bruins neck and neck with their opponents up until the very end.
“I thought my team left it all out on the field,” UCLA coach Jillian Ellis said. “We played with great heart and great passion. Stanford is a very good team, but I thought we gave them a very good match.
“I felt in the first half we had as many good looks at goal as they did. Our defense was outstanding. That’s a good attacking unit they have, and I thought we limited their chances.”
Both teams were indeed locked into a standstill in the first half, with the Bruins and the Cardinal recording seven shots apiece.
But in the 64th minute, Stanford struck first on a shot by senior forward Kelley O’Hara from 20 yards out that streaked in just beneath the crossbar.
Facing a 1-0 deficit, UCLA answered with a goal of its own at the 75:07 mark. After having received a pass from junior midfielder Kylie Wright, senior forward Lauren Cheney posted up against her defender, spun right and bent one into the upper left to equalize and bring her team back into contention.
“(Stanford’s) defenders had been playing hard. They didn’t want me to turn,” Cheney said. “But I spun the girl, took a look and saw that I had a shot.”
For the rest of regulation, each team came close to striking again.
In the 86th minute, sophomore forward Sydney Leroux sprinted down the middle and slid under a loose ball to get the shot off from just inside the box, but it sailed just above the crossbar and out of play.
And in the 90th minute, Stanford’s sophomore forward Lindsay Taylor fired a shot of her own from just outside the box, but the ball floated right and narrowly missed the post.
The match carried on into overtime, where Taylor again continued the Cardinal attack, blasting another shot two minutes into the extra period.
“They have great forwards, and we knew that coming in,” goalkeeper Chante’ Sandiford said. “We got a lot of chances, but defensively we were really consistent and we played really well. There are going to be chances in soccer.”
Eventually, Stanford’s relentless drive paid off in the 94th minute when Press scored the game-clincher that advanced the Cardinal to its first ever national championship match.
“Give UCLA credit, they were a fantastic team,” Stanford coach Paul Ratcliffe said. “It was fitting that two of the best strikers in the country scored goals for us to defeat them.”
For the Bruins, the loss brought to an end the careers of the five seniors on the team, including Cheney.
“It’s just been amazing,” a teary-eyed Cheney said. “Every team goes through ups and downs, but I’ve never met a bunch of girls as resilient as us.”