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#ThursdayGoals women's soccer preview: Washington State at No. 1 Stanford

Sep 29, 2016
Washington State Athletics / StanfordPhoto.com

Who: Washington State at No. 1 Stanford 

When: Thursday, September 29 at 7 p.m. PT/ 8 p.m. MT on Pac-12 Network and Pac-12 Bay Area

On the call: Christian Miles and Kyndra de St. Aubin

On the home side: Stanford (8-0-1, 1-0-0 Pac-12)

For a third week in a row, Stanford was ranked No. 1 in the nation by all three major polls. If you've been watching, this is no surprise. The Card opened up conference play against Oregon and proved that they're ready to roll, defeating the Ducks 3-0 and improving their 2016 record to a pristine 8-0-1. 

The Cardinal has yet to trail in a game this season with a roster of talented young players and tough veterans who have no problem finding the back of the net. Stanford scored three second-half goals in eight minutes to secure its win over Oregon. The women from The Farm has scored more than once in all but one game this season. 

Cardinal to watch:

Jordan DiBiasi, sophomore – midfielder: DiBiasi will be the one to watch in every game, honestly. The sophomore has already scored a team-leading six goals, all in separate games. That's compared to five total goals all of last season. If you're looking for some high-octane offense, just watch DiBiasi tear it up...

Jane Campbell, senior – goalkeeper: The Card's 3-0 win over Oregon sealed Campbell's 32nd career shutout. She's ranked third overall in Stanford history, needing three more to reach former Cardinal keeper Nicole Barnhart's all-time school record (35). 

Andi Sullivan, junior – midfielder: Sullivan is a workhorse on defense, but she leads the team with four assists and has three goals of her own. 

On the visiting side:  Washington State (5-3-1, 0-1-0 Pac-12)

The Cougs lost their conference opener to Colorado 1-0. Their 5-3-1 record pushes them to the 11th slot in the Pac-12 standings above rival Washington. But Wazzu has played a couple ranked teams pretty tough, beating No. 13 Santa Clara 1-0 and losing to No. 16 BYU 2-1 in double overtime. The Cougs have the chance to disrupt the narrative of Stanford's unblemished season. 

Cougs to watch: 

Morgan Weaver, freshman – forward: Weaver has only been a Coug for a few weeks and already has a team-leading six goals under her belt. 

Alysha Overland, sophomore – forward: Overland and Weaver form a dynamic duo up front, with Overland contributing four goals and an assist so far this season. 

Ella Dederick, redshirt sophomore – goalkeeper: Dederick is a brick wall in front of the net, holding a .77 save average. This one could come down to a battle of the keepers. 

Stories to watch

Stanford's Jane Campbell and Andi Sullivan are two of five Pac-12 representatives in the running for the MAC Hermann Trophy, which is one of the most prestigious awards given annually to the top female and male collegiate soccer player.