Recap: No. 1 Stanford MSOC comes back to force gritty draw against Duke
On Sunday, No. 1 Stanford men’s soccer and Duke had a 2-2 draw on The Farm. Duke forwards Ulfur Bjornsson and Adam Luckhurst scored for the Blue Devils while Stanford midfielders Fletcher Bank and Zach Bohane scored for the Cardinal. Duke goalkeeper Wessel Speel and Stanford goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly each had three saves along with their two goals allowed. Stanford is now 7-1-1 overall and 2-0-1 in the ACC while Duke is now 3-2-2 overall and 1-1-1 in the ACC.
BOX SCORE: Duke at Stanford-Sunday, September 22nd
“It was a fantastic game of soccer in that the huge crowd we had, they were certainly treated to an awesome game packed with action and obviously just an excitement from start to finish,” Stanford head coach Jeremy Gunn said after the match. “We were frustrated because it was a pretty even game. I thought they had created a couple of good chances, we created chances, and they just managed to pick us off twice. And it was a game where we’re going back and forth and we find ourselves two-nil down and it’s just devastating because it didn’t feel like we were getting outplayed. It didn’t feel like we were really getting out-chanced and that they just beautifully picked us off twice.
“So that was really frustrating. We’re in a huge hole. But magnificent by the team. We knew that we were in the first half, we were almost there. There was so many almost moments, but never quite good enough moments. And we just said look, keep doing what we’re doing. We’ll keep turning the screw and we really think those almost moments will become chances and in the end in the second half, we really really turned the screws and really really put them under incredible pressure and I think in the end, I don’t think anybody in either program can complain with the tie. We would have been bitterly disappointed coming away with a loss the way the game played out and I think it was a fair result in the end, really.”
Duke was the first team score in this match despite the fact that Stanford was doing a better job of creating scoring opportunities. Stanford had six corner kicks to Duke’s one corner kick in the first half, but that didn’t stop Duke from scoring at the 43:49 mark as Ulfur Bjornsson found the top center of the goal off his left foot thanks to an assist from Julius Suber. That gave the Blue Devils a 1-0 lead going into halftime.
Stanford got a corner kick at 49:31 early on in the second half but wasn’t able to capitalize. Duke on the other hand was able to score at 54:08 as Adam Luckhurst found the top left of the goal shortly after a free kick at 53:14. The Blue Devils now had a 2-0 lead.
Down by two goals and less than 45 minutes to play, Stanford was in a hole and needed to act quickly. To Stanford’s credit, they didn’t give up. They maintained belief that they could get back in this match and that’s what they did:
At 57:33, Duke fired a shot that was saved by Stanford goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly, keeping it a two goal match. At 66:59, Shane de Flores fired a shot for Stanford that bounced off the goal post and out. That was a frustrating moment for Stanford, but at the same time a moment that gave them some hope to at least score once and make it interesting.
“Shane’s chance was an amazing chance,” Gunn said. “Would have been a great goal.”
At 72:49, Shane de Flores fired a shot to the bottom center of the net that was saved by Duke goalkeeper Wessel Speel. Shortly afterwards, Fletcher Bank was able to score for the Cardinal off an assist from Will Cleary, making it a 2-1 match at 74:12. The packed crowd at Cagan Stadium erupted with enthusiasm as the Cardinal now had a pulse.
“Yeah, we’ve just been talking about just getting into the right area in the penalty box and from the right side and from the left side and there was just a good ball and kinda happened before I even knew it was able to get a flick header,” Bank said of his goal. “They always have a really good goalkeeper. Really strong and really big. So I was just trying to keep it away in the corner and was able to find the left side there and put it home to get us back in the match.”
“It does because I think you go from that moment where you feel like you’re comfortable to suddenly you can be really uncomfortable,” Gunn said of what making it a one goal match does. “And that’s what I’ve been very excited about our team. We’ve been in tight games and yet we’ve looked quite comfortable in those moments. Whereas I thought once it got tight, they could have still picked us off for another goal because they’re very dangerous players, but we looked like we were going to continue attacking. We looked like we were going to continue asking the questions.”
Stanford continued to push and play with aggression getting corner kicks at 76:03 and 79:56. Neither led to a goal, but it was clear that a second goal for the Cardinal was a possibility. After a throw in at 86:53, Stanford was able to score at 87:19 as Zach Bohane found the bottom right of the goal off his right foot as Fletcher Bank got the assist. It was now tied up 2-2 and Stanford had the momentum.
“Yeah, it was honestly a really nice play by Jackson to hold off the defender and he found me in the pocket,” Bank said of Bohane’s goal. “I was driving. I was on my right looking for a shot and really didn’t see it and then Zach just came out of nowhere. Was able to find him and was able to get a toe poke off in the corner and it was a really nice goal and yeah, just happy we were able to tie the game and get back in it.”
Stanford would not get another shot off the rest of the match, but they were able to walk out with a 2-2 draw. After being down by two goals, the Cardinal were very happy to have this be the end result. A draw is much better than a loss as it gives them a point in league play.
For Stanford, this match speaks to their resilience and toughness. They never give up no matter what the odds say and they play hard all the way until the 90th minute. When you have that approach to the game, good things can happen. Of course, they should not be happy to have gotten down by two goals, but at the end of the day they turned lemons into lemonade.
“Yeah, I think it shows how mentally strong we are and how physically strong we are,” Gunn said of the comeback. “I think when you get into those moments, that’s when you stop doing all the correct things and you panic or you lose your head. Those different things. Whereas that’s what I was really proud of. We stuck at it and we kept growing in the game, you know.
“When you look at that game, I know the goals change how people feel, but we looked like we could go another twenty minutes, whereas they were trying to cross the finish line. Which some of that is the psychology of the score line, but I think some of it is also the mental strength and the physical strength we have.”
“I think just knowing how the first half went,” Bank said of the key to the comeback. “And not only that, even before they scored, in the second half I feel like we were playing well. We were creating chances. Just weren’t able to find that final product to score a goal. So even when we went down one-zero, two-zero, I had a feeling we were going to get one back at least and then when we got one back, I knew the second one was coming. So, I think we just have that belief in the team and really that’s what’s different this year is just like the belief in the next play mentality that it’s going to come and that we just got to trust in each other and don’t fold in the towel. Don’t wave the white flag. Just keep fighting with the group.”
As for Duke, getting a draw against the number one team in the country on the road is overall a good result. They played great to go up 2-0, but they leave Palo Alto with a feeling that is bittersweet considering they had a golden opportunity to pick up a huge road upset.
Up next for Stanford is a road match at Virginia on Friday, September 27th at 4:30 PM PT.
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