No. 2 Wake Forest Set For Rematch Against No. 3 Stanford in Second-Ever College Cup

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Returning to the College Cup for the first time since 2011, the No. 2-seeded Wake Forest women's soccer team is set to take on No. 3-seeded Stanford in the national semifinals at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. on Friday, Dec. 6.

The match is slated for 5 p.m. and will be shown live on ESPNU and ESPN+. Live stats will be available here.

NCAA College Cup - Semifinals
#2 Wake Forest (15-3-4) vs. #3 Stanford (16-5-4)
Friday, Dec. 6, 2024 - 5:00 p.m. - ESPNU
Cary, N.C. – WakeMed Soccer Park

Deacs In College Cup

Wake Forest advanced to the College Cup for the second time in program history, with the first coming in 2011 when the Demon Deacons had Katie Stengel (Crystal Palace) leading the line and Aubrey Kingsbury (Washington Spirit) between the sticks.
- The Demon Deacons have never made the championship match.
- It will be a rematch of Wake Forest's first-ever win over a No. 1-ranked team as the Deacs defeated the Cardinal, 1-0, earlier this season at Spry Stadium.
Wake Forest is in the midst of its 23rd appearance in the NCAA Tournament, with 22 of them coming under the helm of Tony da Luz.
- The Demon Deacons have made three of the last four tournaments, just missing out last year with a record of 10-3-5 and a sixth-place ACC finish.
Wake Forest now holds an overall record of 25-21-2 in the tournament.

Historic Regular Season

Five members of the Wake Forest women's soccer team were selected for 2024 All-ACC honors, headlined by a First-Team selection for junior forward Caiya Hanks.
- A senior trio of midfielder Emily Colton, forward Emily Murphy and defender Zara Chavoshi tabbed second-team nods, while redshirt-freshman goalkeeper Valentina Amaral earned third-team honors.
- Five players earning All-ACC nods is the most in program history. Additionally, Hanks became the 10th Wake Forest player to be tabbed All-ACC First Team and first since Aubrey Bledsoe in 2013.
- On Tuesday, the same five were also named All-Atlantic Region by United Soccer Coaches, with Hanks earning First Team honors followed by Colton and Chavoshi on the second team, Murphy on the third team and Amaral on the fourth team.
The Demon Deacons are currently ranked No. 3 in United Soccer Coaches Poll. This season, they were ranked as high as No. 2, the highest ranking in program history.
- Additionally, Wake Forest sits seventh in RPI and first in the TopDrawerSoccer poll.
On Sept. 19, the Demon Deacons claimed their first-ever win over a No. 1 team as they took down Stanford, 1-0.
- The Deacs became the first team in NCAA history to take down a No. 1-ranked team and a No. 2-ranked team in back-to-back matches after downing No. 2 Virginia in Charlottesville on Sept. 15.
Wake Forest finished with 22 points in ACC play as it finished second in the ACC, tied for the best finish in program history.
- 22 points and seven total wins in conference play is the most in program history.
This season, Wake Forest had three players selected as an ACC Offensive Players of the Week with Caiya Hanks, Emily Colton and Emily Murphy all garnering the honors over the last two months.
- The Deacs also placed three on the TopDrawerSoccer Top 100 list with Emily Colton (#2), Emily Morris (#45) and Zara Chavoshi (#64).
The Deacs currently have five top-10 wins this season, the most for the Deacs in program history.
Two weeks ago, Wake Forest placed six on the CSC Academic All-Region Team (Hanks, Ansbrow, Colton, Murphy, Chavoshi, Morris).
In addition to posting the best goals-against average in the conference, the Wake Forest defense only conceded seven goals during ACC play, the fewest in the conference as well as the second-most clean sheets with five.
11 goals allowed in the regular season is the fewest in program history, beating last season's record by three goals.

The Flyin' Hawaiian

With three goals and four assists so far in the NCAA tournament, star forward Caiya Hanks currently ranks inside the top 10 in program history in points (33), goals (11) and assists (11) for a single season.
- Her first-half strike against USC moved her into third in program history in total points (33) and now only trails Katie Stengel's 2010 (37 points) and 2011 (46 points) seasons.
- Hanks is currently tied for the most total points (10) and assists (4) in the NCAA Tournament, while also sitting tied for fifth in goals (3).
On Wednesday, she was named as a MAC Hermann Semifinalist, just the second player in Wake Forest history to accomplish this.
With her assist in the second round, she became just the sixth player at the D1 level this season to reach 10 goals and 10 assists, and third to do so in program history, joining Anne Shropshire (1998) and Kaley Fountain (2009).
Her 11 goals this year are the most for the Deacs since 2021 and her 11 assists are the most since 2009.
Heading into the weekend, Hanks ranks fifth in the ACC in total points, seventh in goals, and fourth in assists.
- Additionally, her 18 points in conference play ranked second in the ACC and her seven goals were tied for the most.
Hanks has also added four game-winning goals this season, which ranks third in the conference.
The Hawaiian has also recorded seven games this season with multiple goal contributions, including two in the NCAA Tournament alone against Morehead State (two goals, two assists) and USC (one goal, one assist).
Despite only being a junior, she is already sixth all-time in program history in career assists with 18 and is now five points away from cracking the top 10, currently sitting at 54.
In addition to being named First Team All-ACC, Hanks was also tabbed to TopDrawerSoccer's National Team of the Week for her performance against Morehead State in the first round.

Elite 90 Award

Laurel Ansbrow was named the recipient of the Elite 90 award for the 2024 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship.
- She is the first Wake Forest student athlete for any sport to win the award.
Ansbrow, majoring in Health & Exercise Science, currently carries a 4.0 GPA and was presented with the award during the team dinner Wednesday night in Cary, N.C.
Ansbrow surpassed 5,000 career minutes in the quarterfinal match against USC. This season, she has appeared in all 22 matches with 21 starts.
The Elite 90, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 90 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's championships.
Eligible student-athletes are sophomores or above academically who have participated in a sport for at least two years with their school. All ties are broken by the number of credits completed.

The Emily Trifecta

Following her opening goal against Colorado, senior midfielder Emily Colton has recorded at least one goal contribution in 11 of her last 18 appearances for the Demon Deacons and is third on the team with 21 total points.
- In the tournament opener, she recorded the first multi-assist game of her career.
- She now has seven goals on the year which ties a career high she set her freshman campaign.
- Additionally, her seven assists this season also set a career high.
- She had a goal contribution in seven of Wake Forest's 10 ACC matches.
- Colton was ranked as the No. 2 player in the nation by TopDrawerSoccer earlier this season.
Continuing her incredible 12-game stretch, scoring seven times and notching five assists during that span, senior forward Emily Murphy easily converted on her opening penalty attempt to set the tone for the Demon Deacons' shootout victory over USC.
- Murphy has scored in all three of the four NCAA Tournament games so far.
- She is second on the team with 22 points on the year with seven goals and eight assists, all of which are career-highs.
- Additionally, she has 23 goals and 20 assists for her collegiate career, putting her at 66 points, the most of any active Demon Deacon.
Emily Morris has been a crucial part of Wake Forest's success this season, playing in a versatile role throughout the season. Despite playing in a more defensive role, she has scored in two of the last five matches for the Deacs, including the second goal against Colorado last Friday.
- She now has nine goals for her career in addition to seven assists for 25 points.
- Of note, she is one of four players to have started and played every match so far this year.
- Morris was named to the ACC All-Tournament team following her equalizer against Florida State in the semifinals.

Brick Wall Amaral

Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Valentina Amaral had an incredible performance against USC and single-handedly kept the Demon Deacons alive for most of the contest.
- She finished with a career-high six saves, including a one-on-one stop in the second overtime period.
- The Florida-native then stopped two penalties in the shootout to secure Wake Forest's spot in the College Cup.
Her .712 goals-against average this season is the third-best best in the ACC and it currently ranks as the lowest in program history.
- Additionally, her five clean sheets in conference play ranked as the second-most in the ACC.
In her first full season, Amaral started all 10 ACC matches and only allowed seven goals, the fewest in the conference.
Amaral is now 11-2-3 in matches she has started for her career.
She came up with a huge penalty save in the victory over No. 6 Florida State and logged four saves in the historic 1-0 win against No. 1 Stanford.

Fast Starters

The Demon Deacons have wasted no time getting on the board this season, scoring eight goals within the first 20 minutes so far this campaign and six within the first 10.
- Nikayla Small - :59 vs. NC State (10/31/24)
- Anna Swanson - 1:47 vs. Morehead State (11/15/24)
- Abbie Colton - 2:00 vs. Mississippi State (8/25/24)
- Emily Murphy - 2:17 vs. Syracuse (9/29/24)
- Emily Colton - 5:10 vs. Colorado (11/22/24)
- Emily Murphy - 9:05 vs. California (9/22/24)
- Caiya Hanks - 12:26 vs. Morehead State (11/15/24)
- Caiya Hanks - 16:30 vs. Virginia (9/15/24)
Nikayla Small's opener against NC State was the fourth-fastest goal in program history at 59 seconds and was the fastest for the Deacs since 2006.

Last Time Out

For the second time in program history and first since 2011, the No. 2-seeded Wake Forest women's soccer team (15-3-4) has advanced to the College Cup following a 4-3 advancement in penalty kicks over No. 1-seed USC (18-1-4) Friday afternoon at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The two sides ended 110 minutes of action level at 2-2 before senior Kristin Johnson converted on the winning penalty kick.
The Deacs took the lead in the 21st minute of the contest, as a beautifully placed through ball from senior defender Zara Chavoshi found junior Caiya Hanks who buried Wake Forest's first shot of the afternoon into the side netting.
Also with the goal, it marked the first time USC had trailed in the NCAA Tournament and was the first time the Trojans were behind since a 2-1 loss to then-No. 1 Stanford on Sept. 8, a span of 17 matches.
USC would level the match less than two minutes out of the halftime break before taking a 2-1 lead in the 59th minute. Despite the deficit, Wake Forest responded in the 80th minute, as junior Alex Wood one-time a shot from a nicely set up pass from Hanks.
After neither side was able to score in the 20 minutes of overtime action, the Demon Deacons and Trojans went to penalty kicks. Sophomore Valentina Amaral, who finished the evening with six saves, set the tone by stopping USC's first attempt before Johnson slotted home the match-advancing kick.

Spry is a Fortress

Spry has almost guaranteed results for the Demon Deacons over the last three seasons, as Wake Forest has posted a stellar 18-3-6 record at home since the start of 2022.
Wake Forest finished the 2024 season with a 9-1-1 mark at Spry.
Before the loss to Duke earlier this year, the Demon Deacons held the program record for longest home unbeaten streak at 15 matches.
- During the 15-game run, eight resulted in a clean sheet for the Deacs as they outscored opponents 35-8.
- It marked the second-longest active home unbeaten run in the ACC, behind only Florida State's 25.

Scouting the Cardinal

Three-time national champions Stanford is making its 12th all-time appearance in the College Cup, with 11 of them coming in the last 16 years.
- The Cardinal opened the tournament with a 5-0 victory over UC Santa Barbara at home followed by a 2-1 win over UConn on a neutral site.
- Stanford then took down #5 Arkansas in a shootout (4-2) after playing to a 1-1 draw over 110 minutes.
- Finally, they clinched their spot in the College Cup following a 2-0 victory over #13 Notre Dame at home.
The Cardinal enter the match with a 16-4-2 record, including a 5-4-1 mark in conference play.
Redshirt sophomore Andrea Kitahata leads the squad with nine goals and six assists for 24 points.
- Earlier this season, she recorded a goal in five-consecutive matches, but has only scored four times since Sept. 5.
- Kitahata has scored twice during the NCAA Tournament, including a goal and an assist in the quarterfinal match against Notre Dame.
In goal for the Cardinal is Haley Craig, who has recorded 11 clean sheets this season, the sixth-most in the nation and most in the ACC.
- Additionally, she has the fourth-best goals-against average (.768) in ACC.

Series History vs. Stanford

Wake Forest leads the all-time series against Stanford, 3-0-1 dating back to 1997.
- The Demon Deacons are the only team in the country to be unbeaten all-time against the Cardinal with at least three matches played.
Earlier this season, Wake Forest defeated Stanford 1-0 at Spry Stadium and earned its first-ever win over a No. 1-ranked team.
- Emily Colton scored the only goal of the contest as the Deacs became the first team in NCAA history to defeat the No. 2 and No. 1-ranked teams back-to-back, after beating Virginia earlier in the week.
In the inaugural match of the series, Wake Forest earned a 2-1 win over No. 11 Stanford in California on Sept. 21, 1997.
The second meeting came in the Santa Clara Classic in 2000, where the teams battled to a 2-2
2006 was the last time the two sides met before this season, as the Demon Deacons claimed another 2-1 victory over the Cardinal following an overtime winner from Megan Upchurch.
This will be the first meeting between the two schools in the NCAA Tournament.

Up Next
The winner of the match will advance to the College Cup finals and take on either #1 Duke or #2 North Carolina on Monday, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. The match will once again be played at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C.

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No. 2 Wake Forest Set For Rematch Against No. 3 Stanford in Second-Ever College Cup

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Valentina Amaral

Laurel Ansbrow

Zara Chavoshi

Abbie Colton

Emily Colton

Caiya Hanks

Kristin Johnson

Emily Morris

Emily Murphy

Nikayla Small

Anna Swanson

Alex Wood

Wake Forest Athletics

No. 2 Wake Forest Set For Rematch Against No. 3 Stanford in Second-Ever College Cup

Related News

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Valentina Amaral

Laurel Ansbrow

Zara Chavoshi

Abbie Colton

Emily Colton

Caiya Hanks

Kristin Johnson

Emily Morris

Emily Murphy

Nikayla Small

Anna Swanson

Alex Wood

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