PALO ALTO, Calif. – Saint Mary's Men's Soccer will head down to Stanford to take on the No. 8 Cardinal on Friday night, in what will be their last meeting with Stanford as a member of the Pac 12 before they shift to the ACC.
 
The Cardinal were ranked No. 1 in the previous top-25 coach's poll, before a 1-1 tie with Washington and a 2-1 loss to Oregon State dropped them down to No. 8.

 The Gaels come into the game ranked 12th in assists per game (2.62), 15th in total points (51), 26th in points per game (6.38), 39th in shots per game (14.25), fourth in total assists (21), and 10th in total points (51).
 
SMC deserved a better result in last year's meeting against Stanford, but ended up on the short end of a 2-0 score after a handball was called in the box late in the match in Moraga, Calif.
 
Just 44 seconds after the penalty goal from the handball, the Gaels thought they had drawn a foul, but instead one was called on the SMC captain and Stanford would get a penalty shot just to the left of the box. The cross was headed home to make it 2-0, and suddenly the Gaels great effort against the Cardinal was erased on two penalties. The loss snapped a three-game unbeaten streak against the Cardinal for Saint Mary's, including a 1-0 win in double overtime on The Farm in 2021.
 
THE DETAILS
Saint Mary's (5-1-2) at Stanford (4-1-1)
Thursday, September 22 at 7:00 pm
Cagan Stadium – Palo Alto, Calif.
Watch Live | Live Stats | Tickets
 
LAST TIME OUT
Saint Mary's came away with a 1-0 over UC Davis on Sunday, behind a strong game from keeper Jack Landreth and the first career goal for Fynn Allmon. Landreth made his presence felt right away with two big saves in the 10th minute, a leaping save in 25th minute off a set piece, and another big kick save in the 78th minute. The shutout was Landreth's third of the season and fourth as a Gael, helping earn him the WCC Defensive Player of the Week Award for September 18.
 
ABOUT STANFORD
With its 2-1 victory over UC Irvine last week, the Cardinal ran its non-conference unbeaten streak to 16 straight matches (13-0-3) dating to last season. Stanford has three more nonconference matches on the calendar for 2023, beginning with Saint Mary's on Friday before hosting Santa Clara and San Francisco in October.
 
Stanford dropped to No. 8 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll and to No. 6 in the Top
Drawer Soccer poll following its draw with Washington and loss to Oregon State over the weekend. The Cardinal have still appeared in the top 10 of the United Soccer Coaches rankings for 17 consecutive polls. Last week, Stanford was named a consensus No. 1 team in the rankings for the second-straight week, the first time it's held the top spot in the rankings since 2017, the last year Stanford won an NCAA title.
 
After starting the season 3-0, Stanford moved to No. 1 in both the United Soccer Coaches poll and the Top Drawer Soccer rankings. It's the first time Stanford has claimed the top spot in the United Soccer Coaches poll since week 4 of the 2019 season.
 
The Cardinal dropped its first game of the season on Sunday against the Beavers, falling 2-1
at home to its Pac-12 rival. Stanford earned the first Pac-12 point of the season via a 1-1 draw with Washington on Thursday night. The two teams traded goals late in the first half, with Noah Adnan putting the Cardinal up 1-0 in the 38th minute before Washington equalized in the 43rd.
 
Eleven players have registered a point so far, leading the Cardinal to 14 goals and 20 assists through four matches. Zach Bohane leads the way with 11 points on four goals and three assists while Shane de Flores is behind him with seven points coming from two goals and three assists.
 
CLICK HERE to purchase Saint Mary's Men's Soccer tickets for the 2023 season.
 
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