In the first installment of what is now being called “Big Clásico”, #15 Stanford men’s soccer and Cal had a fierce battle in Berkeley on Sunday that resulted in a 1-1 draw. Cal senior midfielder Evan Davila scored for the Golden Bears at 52:11 to give them a 1-0 lead before Stanford redshirt sophomore forward Jackson Kiil evened things up by finding the back of the net at 75:19 off an assist from Zach Bohane.
Stanford redshirt freshman Rowan Schnebly got the start at goalkeeper for the Cardinal and played all 90 minutes, totaling two saves. Cal redshirt sophomore Connor Lambe got the start at goalkeeper for the Golden Bears and played all 90 minutes as well, totaling five saves. Stanford is now 7-2-5 overall and 1-1-5 in the Pac-12 while Cal is now 6-5-4 overall and 2-3-2 in the Pac-12.
BOX SCORE: Stanford at Cal-Sunday, October 29th
“No, it was an incredible game,” Stanford head coach Jeremy Gunn said after the match. “I mean it's just two really good teams going at it and I thought we were just marginally outplaying Cal, but you know we give away a goal when we're on an attack we're in the final third trying to get into the box and we get counterattacked for a goal it's just you know that's really disappointing.
“That that being said, the guts and courage we had, we fought our way back and as the game was going on we're really pushing. Very proud of how we played. I thought we played with guts and determination and thought we played a lot of quality and you know we were really close, but it's a road tie against a very good team so we move on to the next game.”
The match was a battle all afternoon long as both teams came out with great energy and passion. Cal had a solid crowd out to watch the match at Edwards Stadium as Cal cheer, band, and mascot were there to cheer on the Golden Bears. The band frequently played throughout the match, creating an atmosphere that Stanford found to be amusing.
“The environment was interesting,” Kiil said with a bit of a chuckle. “They were playing some pop songs during the game. So I mean, that was interesting. But I mean, yeah it was good. It’s always good to have a good environment. A good atmosphere helps you play well.”
Stanford had an opportunity early to score as Bohane fired at shot out right at 1:58. At 10:42, Kiil fired a shot for the Cardinal only for Lambe to come up with the save for the Bears. At 11:02, Arik Duncan returned the favor by firing a shot for Cal, only for it to go wide left.
Both teams continued to trade shots throughout the half, but neither was able to find the back of the net. What made things tough was the lack of corner kicks as both teams did a nice job of defending against those. The lone corner kick of the half came at 30:43 for Stanford and they were not able to capitalize.
Both teams were playing physical, trading fouls back and forth. At 34:02, Justin Knighton of Cal was called for a yellow card, adding a bit more salt to that particular foul.
At the half, it was tied 0-0. Neither team was making things easy for their opponent. It was played like a rivalry match ought to be played.
In the second half, Cal came out aggressive as Nonso Adimabua fired a shot at 48:59. Shortly thereafter at 52:11, Evan Davila found the back of the net for the Bears, taking advantage of a defensive breakdown in the Cardinal. The Cal crowd erupted with joy as Davila was mobbed by his teammates in the corner of the field.
“They got some size and strength,” Gunn said of Cal. “The forward is just so capable of occupying people. He’s just so strong and so it’s a big handful for our center backs and I thought we dealt with him really really well. And then obviously they’ve got a great attacking midfielder that ends up scoring their goal. I mean, it was a lovely drive and a lovely finish.”
Cal then continued to apply the pressure, getting a corner kick at 57:06. In the 64th minute, Cal then had three shots, all of which failed to drop. But, they were putting a real scare into Stanford, who was doing all they could to defend the goal and not allow a second one to fall.
There was also a trading of yellow cards as Zach Bohane was called for one at 63:54 while Santiago Hopkins picked one up for Cal at 68:51. Hopkins’ yellow card came shortly after a Stanford corner kick at 67:30.
At 75:19, Stanford finally evened things up as Jackson Kiil scored off an assist from Zach Bohane, who had a free kick. Stanford was starting to play more aggressively and they were rewarded as a result.
“Great delivery by Z-Bo and then a lovely flick header by Jackson,” Gunn said. “So it's a great free kick, great header, and a great goal.”
“Yeah, I mean, he just sent it into that first zone,” Kiil said of Bohane’s assist. “Got across my man and flicked it on. Went in. So, it was good.”
From there, neither team would score as it would remain a 1-1 tie. Stanford continued to press but wasn’t able to tack on a second goal while Cal did the same. Cal’s final shot came at 86:50 as Arik Duncan fired one off to the right. Stanford’s final shot came at 89:10 as Liam Doyle fired one too high.
Considering how both teams played, a draw was a very fair result. And considering that Cal is a top-40 team, Stanford seemed to be fine with the outcome. Especially since there will be a rematch on The Farm Saturday, November 11th.
“I thought it was a good match,” Kiil said. “I thought we dominated well. I thought in the final third could have had a little more quality, but I mean, a draw is a draw. We play them in what, a week and a half. So I mean, we’ll be looking to get a result then…We’ve just gotta do our thing. Dominate territory and bring it to them this time. I just think a little bit more quality in the final third and then taking our chances. Doing the same thing defensively. Yeah, I mean, it’s just a matter of fine margins.”
Being completely honest, I think Stanford should feel very fortunate to escape with the result that they got. Cal was very aggressive all match and were it not for Stanford’s defenders playing phenomenally, they very well could have scored a second goal. I was honestly surprised Cal didn’t find that second goal, but alas it never came.
“I thought we were just really we were rock solid defensively,” Gunn said. “You know we were giving up very very few looks on goal and so I thought the whole back four played really really well. And so you think you know we didn't give any chances up and to be honest, you know, Rowan didn't have a lot to save which again is a testament. Just every game we've been pretty stingy at the back. That’s been very impressive, but just giving away the old goal here there that would like to get rid of them but other than that no complaints at all about how they did.”
“Yeah, they were huge,” Kiil said of their defenders. “I mean, defense wins you games. I owe a lot to them. Made some huge blocks to let us do the work up there, get the tie at least. Yeah, they were fantastic back there.”
Up next for Stanford is a home match on Thursday against San Diego State. That will begin at 7:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and KZSU radio.
“I see extra energy from the boys every single time we got out,” Gunn said. “And that’s something that I’m really really proud of our team that we have such a level of consistency of attitude and output.”
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