By: Joe Lami

Stanford’s season came to an end on Friday night, when the Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated the Cardinal 81-60 in the third round of the NCAA tournament.  The Cardinal were riding a five-game winning streak, but the second ranked Irish used amazing guard play to power past the Cardinal.

Notre Dame was led by their two guards, each took turns in dominating a half.

Sophomore, Lili Allen, played the game of her life, as she notched a new career high, 28 points, 24 of which was in the first half. Allen was averaging ten per game entering Friday, but was one of the difference maker in ending Stanford’s season. 

National player of the year candidate, Jewell Loyd, took over in the second half, scoring 17 of her 24 points. “She did a really good job in the second half, but she is going to draw the most attention, which why you see her making so many shots,” added Notre Dame hall of fame coach, Muffet McGraw.

The Cardinal were trying to keep it close early in the second half, as they trailed by just four, but that’s when Loyd took over, helping Notre Dame extend their lead to 59-47 in just a matter of minutes. “Loyd is probably the National player of the year,” added Stanford coach, Tara VanDerveer.

It was the end of the line for Stanford seniors Amber Orrange, Bonnie Samuelson, and Taylor Greenfield.  Samuelson led the way for the Cardinal with 17 points, 15 of which came from beyond the three-point arc.  Orrange finishes her career being one of Stanford’s best guards of all-time finishing with 12 points.  She ends her career high on the Cardinal’s all-time scoring list with 1,426 points.

Greenfield continued her strong play of late, coming off the bench to score eight.

The Cardinal were heavy underdogs against the one-seeded Irish in the Oklahoma City region, and unfortunately will not be able to continue their season.  The Irish will take on the Baylor Bears on Sunday for a chance at the Final Four.