Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVO — Not everybody gets a second chance in life.
Doing so in sports is even more rare.
The BYU women's soccer team isn't taking one of its rare second chances for granted, either, with a rematch against top-seeded Stanford in the second round of the NCAA Women's College Cup Tournament Thursday in Palo Alto, California, and the Cougars (16-2-2) want nothing more than to hand revenge to a Cardinal team that handed them their first loss of the season back in September.
"It's not very often you get a chance to play the same team twice in a season, especially a team as great as Stanford is," said BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood, whose team is 2-1 all-time against Stanford in NCAA tourney play. "We're preparing like we have for every game. We know we have to believe in ourselves, get the job done and be confident when we get on the field. But more than anything, it's a fantastic opportunity, and we're pretty excited about it."
The Cougars and Cardinal (17-2-1) will kick off Thursday at 7 p.m. in Palo Alto in the first match between the two teams since a rescheduled 1-0 win by Stanford on Sept. 7. The loss snapped BYU's five-match winning streak to start the season, and was the only loss in a string of 14-straight results in 2015.
But BYU can take plenty out of that loss, players concurred after knocking off Utah Valley 1-0 in the opening round of the tournament. The Cardinal were ranked No. 2 in the country at the time, and BYU entered with its own top 10 ranking.
This time, Stanford is one of four top seeds in the NCAA Tournament, and BYU hangs just outside the top 10 at No. 13 in the final NSCAA coaches' poll. The Cougars survived their West Coast Conference slate for their fourth-straight league title after losing last year's leading scorer Ashley Hatch to a knee injury.
"The Stanford game was good to show us where we are compared to the top teams in the country, and we were right there with them," said midfielder Elena Medeiros, who scored her team-high eighth goal of the season against the Wolverines. "But we've gotten so much better this season, so I am excited to see what we can do."
Confidence is key down the stretch, and BYU is brimming with it after winning four-straight following its only WCC loss of the year Oct. 22 at San Francisco. Stanford struggled against the other WCC team it faced in 2015, losing 1-0 to Santa Clara on Sept. 20 — a win that helped the Broncos secure a top-four seed in the tournament. The winner of BYU-Stanford will play the winner of Santa Clara and Arizona at noon Saturday.
"I think it helps us since we've already played them," midfielder Madie Lyons said of Stanford. "We have that confidence of knowing how they play, so we are ready for them and to put more goals in the net."
The Cougars are 32-9-6 against teams from the state of California since joining the WCC in 2011. BYU also enters the game with one of the top defenses in the country, allowing just seven goals on the year while goalkeeper Rachel Boaz leads the nation with a .307 goals-against average. The San Diego State transfer has allowed just six goals in 1,840 minutes between the sticks.
"We have to believe in our attack and our defense," Rockwood said. "It's hard to slow Stanford down … so defense will be important for us. We have to make them uncomfortable and go at them when we have those opportunities."
When: Thursday, Nov. 19, 6 p.m. MST
Where: Palo Alta, Calif.
Broadcast: ESPN 960 AM (radio) /GoStanford.com (streaming)
