The Stanford Cardinal men’s soccer team is off to a strong start this season, sporting a 10-1-1 record that has it ranked as one of the best three Division I squads in the entire country.
That’s a familiar place for the Stanford program, which regularly boasts one of the top teams in college soccer.
But unlike past seasons, a player from Maine is at the center of that success. And he’s only a freshman.
Josh Partal of Bangor has been turning heads on the soccer field for years — both at Bangor High School and then at Milton Academy, where he was the Massachusetts High School Gatorade Player of the Year last season.
And the freshman midfielder is already having an immediate impact for Stanford, leading the team in assists through the first 12 games and establishing himself as a regular starter for the Cardinal.
Partal has compiled six assists already for Stanford, quickly establishing himself as the team’s top distributor to start the season.
The 6-foot-2, 170 pound freshman has already proven head coach Jeremy Gunn right, as Gunn said Partal is the type of player who “excels wherever he goes” when announcing the team’s new recruits this spring.
“Calm on the ball and determined off it, Josh can dictate the game typically from the center of midfield,” Gunn said at the time. “Josh backs up his skill on the ball with a mature composed attitude on the pitch that makes us excited to add to our midfield.”
Partal’s six assists so far have shown that excitement to be warranted. He and the Cardinal play next against the University of Pittsburgh on Oct. 11.
Stanford is ranked No. 3 as of the most recent national coaches poll from last week.
