Cardinal drops Ducks to split opening Pac-12 weekend

Recap, photo courtesy of Stanford

STANFORD, Calif. - Sophomore goalkeeper Trudie Grattan made 11 saves and sophomore Katherine Gjertsen scored four times to lead No. 15 Stanford women's lacrosse to a 15-8 victory over Oregon on Johnson Turf Sunday afternoon.

In a rain-soaked affair, Stanford (5-2, 1-1 Pac-12) scored the first eight goals, held off a small rally, and then cruised to its first Pac-12 win of the season.

Grattan finished with a .647 save percentage, while sophomore Ali Baiocco added five points with two goals and a trio of assists, and also scooped up a team-high four ground balls.

How It Happened
Stanford led 8-0 within the first eight minutes. Gjertsen scored three times for her second hat trick in as many games, while junior captain Mikaela Watson scored twice in that span.

Being amphibious creatures, the Ducks excelled in the rain. As the skies opened up, Oregon scored the final four goals of the half to close to within 8-4 at the break. The Ducks then added the first goal of the second frame to close within 8-5 with 26:00 left.

The Cardinal responded. Junior captain Daniella McMahon started a string of four straight Stanford goals, followed by sophomore Gabby Noto and a pair from Baiocco. That gave Stanford a 12-5 lead with 16:13 remaining.

The lead stretched to 14-6 at the 3:28 mark when Gjertsen tied the career-high four goals she set Friday. Junior Jacie Lemos capped the scoring and tallied her first career hat trick with one second left.

Numbers
Stanford held a sizeable advantage in draw controls, 16-7, behind six from senior Julia Massaro and three apiece from senior Genesis Lucero and Lemos.

Stanford outshot the Ducks, 37-29, including 27-20 on goal. Oregon held a slight edge in ground balls, 18-17, and both teams had 16 turnovers as Massaro and sophomore Chelsea Trattner caused two apiece.

Notables
The game was moved from Cagan Stadium to the Stanford lacrosse practice facility on Johnson Turf due to the poor weather conditions ... Stanford welcomed back former assistant Chelsea Gamble, who is in her first season at the helm of the Ducks.

Next Up
Stanford plays three straight road games and does not return home for 19 days. The Cardinal heads to Cal on Saturday, March 16 for a 5 p.m. matchup, and then heads to Arizona State (Saturday, March 23 at 11 a.m.) and USC (Monday, March 25 at 4 p.m.).