[OCcardinal]

not much to take away from the game. Really interesting starting 11. I expect Winn and Klinger to be in the starting lineup before ACC  starts. If Bhuta is healthy then I want to see her either LB or RB

- Klinger was injured in the recent U20 camp with England and missed a couple of games. It apparently wasn't anything too serious, but after she missed the entire exhibition, I was just happy to see her play Sunday. My guess is they're building up her minutes and she'll be starting soon. Winn missed the exhibition as well, so it was encouraging to see her back too. Neither had quite the impact I was hoping for, but both may still be working their way back to 100% (assuming Winn was injured too).

- Boamah at center back is no surprise. She's been playing center back — and captaining — the U.S. U20 team. It reminds me a little of Kennedy Wesley's transition to CB, where she now plays for club and country. Boamah and London Young were both outstanding Sunday. Young even earned ACC Freshman of the Week, which is pretty impressive for a defender whose team played only one game. I suspect Boamah and Young will be Stanford's starting CB pairing for much of the season. The complication is that Boamah will very likely miss several games in September for the U20 World Cup. That's why I was surprised not to see Emri at all Sunday after she played 45 minutes in the exhibition. Stanford is going to need her when Boamah is gone. Maybe Ratcliffe didn't want to change the back line in such a close game, or perhaps Emri was dealing with a knock.

- Personally, I'd rather not see Bhuta back on the defensive line. Her best season was 2024, when she played in midfield and earned TopDrawerSoccer Best XI second-team honors. Her strengths — receiving under pressure, reading space, winning the ball, progressing possession and connecting lines — are simply more valuable centrally. That's not to say she isn't a good outside back. She is, particularly as an inverted right back who can move inside and essentially become another midfielder in possession, and Stanford used her primarily on the back line when she was available in 2025. But to me, that role takes advantage of her versatility rather than maximizing what she does best. The fact that she is especially effective as an inverted fullback says something: even when Ratcliffe plays her as a defender, he wants her midfield qualities. And I thought a lot of Stanford's offensive problems Sunday began in midfield. They really missed Shae Harvey's work rate and productivity. A healthy Bhuta in midfield may be the best answer. The defense was fine — more than fine — without her.

- Charlotte Kohler's goal was brilliant. Yes, Cal Poly's goal kick wasn't good, but Kohler still had to recognize it immediately, make the run and execute the finish. She did all three beautifully. It looks like she can pick up right where she left off last season, which is especially important because she isn't surrounded by all of the scoring threats Stanford had a year ago. Beyond that, though, there wasn't much to celebrate offensively. Stanford had 17 shots, but only 5 were on goal. That's not good enough. Cal Poly deserves some credit — it has a relatively experienced defensive group and allowed only 2 shots on goal against UNLV earlier in the week — but Stanford needs to create more dangerous chances.

- Ella Kral had a rough first official college game. She made several freshman-type decision-making errors, which was disappointing after she had a goal and an assist in the exhibition. But that's also what being a freshman in D1 soccer can look like. The speed of the game and the pressure on every decision are a big step up, and there are going to be growing pains. I still think she's going to be an important part of Stanford's offense this season. Ratcliffe clearly does too — he played her 82 minutes.

[OCcardinal]

not much to take away from the game. Really interesting starting 11. I expect Winn and Klinger to be in the starting lineup before ACC  starts. If Bhuta is healthy then I want to see her either LB or RB

- Klinger was injured in the recent U20 camp with England and missed a couple of games. It apparently wasn't anything too serious, but after she missed the entire exhibition, I was just happy to see her play Sunday. My guess is they're building up her minutes and she'll be starting soon. Winn missed the exhibition as well, so it was encouraging to see her back too. Neither had quite the impact I was hoping for, but both may still be working their way back to 100% (assuming Winn was injured too).

- Boamah at center back is no surprise. She's been playing center back — and captaining — the U.S. U20 team. It reminds me a little of Kennedy Wesley's transition to CB, where she now plays for club and country. Boamah and London Young were both outstanding Sunday. Young even earned ACC Freshman of the Week, which is pretty impressive for a defender whose team played only one game. I suspect Boamah and Young will be Stanford's starting CB pairing for much of the season. The complication is that Boamah will very likely miss several games in September for the U20 World Cup. That's why I was surprised not to see Emri at all Sunday after she played 45 minutes in the exhibition. Stanford is going to need her when Boamah is gone. Maybe Ratcliffe didn't want to change the back line in such a close game, or perhaps Emri was dealing with a knock.

- Personally, I'd rather not see Bhuta back on the defensive line. Her best season was 2024, when she played in midfield and earned TopDrawerSoccer Best XI second-team honors. Her strengths — receiving under pressure, reading space, winning the ball, progressing possession and connecting lines — are simply more valuable centrally. That's not to say she isn't a good outside back. She is, particularly as an inverted right back who can move inside and essentially become another midfielder in possession, and Stanford used her primarily on the back line when she was available in 2025. But to me, that role takes advantage of her versatility rather than maximizing what she does best. The fact that she is especially effective as an inverted fullback says something: even when Ratcliffe plays her as a defender, he wants her midfield qualities. And I thought a lot of Stanford's offensive problems Sunday began in midfield. They really missed Shae Harvey's work rate and productivity. A healthy Bhuta in midfield may be the best answer. The defense was fine — more than fine — without her.

- Charlotte Kohler's goal was brilliant. Yes, Cal Poly's goal kick wasn't good, but Kohler still had to recognize it immediately, make the run and execute the finish. She did all three beautifully. It looks like she can pick up right where she left off last season, which is especially important because she isn't surrounded by all of the scoring threats Stanford had a year ago. Beyond that, though, there wasn't much to celebrate offensively. Stanford had 17 shots, but only 5 were on goal. That's not good enough. Cal Poly deserves some credit — it has a relatively experienced defensive group and allowed only 2 shots on goal against UNLV earlier in the week — but Stanford needs to create more dangerous chances.

- Ella Kral had a rough first official college game. She made several freshman-type decision-making errors, which was disappointing after she had a goal and an assist in the exhibition. But that's also what being a freshman in D1 soccer can look like. The speed of the game and the pressure on every decision are a big step up, and there are going to be growing pains. I still think she's going to be an important part of Stanford's offense this season. Ratcliffe clearly does too — he played her 82 minutes.