WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Stanford rallied from a six-goal second-half deficit to beat No. 14 Georgetown 11-10 in double overtime on Sunday to earn back-to-back road victories against ranked teams.
Lucy Dikeou scored the unassisted winner 2:14 into the sudden-victory period to complete a run of seven unanswered goals that began with 19:16 left in the second half with Stanford facing a 10-4 deficit.
“We talked about how important each defensive possession was,” Stanford coach Amy Bokker said. “We not only needed to win draws, but make big defensive stops and play as a unit. Offensively, we focused on getting back each goal one at a time.”
The dramatics weren’t limited to Dikeou’s winner. Trailing 10-9 in the final seconds of regulation, Stanford pulled its goalie to bring on an extra attacker. As the seconds would down, Alexandra Crerend was fouled as she drove to the goal, drawing a free-position attempt with one second left. Crerend ripped a shot to the top corner to tie it and force overtime.
It was the second consecutive dramatic last-second free-position goal for Stanford, which beat No. 11 Towson 8-7 on Friday after Hannah Farr scored as time ran out for the first overtime half.
In the first overtime, Georgetown drew a free position, but Stanford goalie Lyndsey Munoz denied Natalie Miller’s shot and Farr picked up the loose ball and the first six-minute overtime, which is played to its entirety, ended scoreless.
In the second overtime, Georgetown won the draw, but an errant pass was picked up by Farr in Stanford’s defensive end to launch an attack.
“We set up a play where we had five people outside the fan opposite the defense,” Bokker said. “We basically trusted any one of them 1 v. 1. Look for a lane and if a shot’s there, they had a green light to take it.”
Dikeou found room, charged her left and buried a backhanded shot for the winner. It was her first goal of the game.
Stanford (5-1) swept its three games in five days road trip that began with a 19-5 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation opening victory at Fresno State. It also was Stanford’s third overtime contest in four games, having lost at home to unranked Vanderbilt 16-15 on March 2.
Rachel Ozer scored three goals and had one assist for Stanford, which gave up the first five goals and never led until Dikeou’s winner. All seven goals during Stanford’s decisive run were scored by different players, including freshman Kelsey Murray, who had the first goal to spark the surge.
Stanford was held scoreless for the game’s first 23:13, but the Cardinal returned the favor. After allowing 10 goals in the first 36 minutes, Stanford held Georgetown (3-2) scoreless for the game’s final 32:03.
“The defense really had to buckle down,” Bokker said. “We had matchups, but we focused on playing team defense and protecting one another. So, if a player tried to score, they would have to go through the whole team.”
Big performances came from Farr, who had two goals and three draw controls, and defender Megan Lerner, who had three ground balls. Crerend also had two draw controls.
The crowd of 1,143 was Stanford’s biggest of the season. With seven players from Maryland or Virginia, and 16 from Eastern states, Stanford had a strong following.
“We’re completely grateful for the support,” Bokker said. “We had dinner at the homes of two of our players, which we were so grateful for. We were fed and well rested. It makes us feel like we have the homefield advantage when we play here.”
Stanford is now 2-0 against ranked opponents.
