Slideshow Tanner Beason gave Stanford a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute against Akron. Photo by Hector Garcia-Molina/Stanford Athletics. Zach Ryan (14) scored the game winner in the 13th minute. Photo by Jim Shorin/Stanford Athletics. Previous Next

Zach Ryan's header with 70 seconds remaining to play found the back of the net and the fifth-ranked Stanford men's soccer team snatched a 2-1 road victory at No. 3 Akron in a nonconference contest Monday night.

Tanner Beason converted a penalty kick for the Cardinal (2-0), which will play its next three games at home, beginning with No. 25 UC Irvine next Monday at 7 p.m.

Stanford nailed down its third top five road victory under coach Jeremy Gunn. The Cardinal went on to win its first and third national championships with quarterfinal road triumphs at No. 1 Wake Forest in both 2015 and 2017.

Stanford's 11th corner of the evening precipitated Ryan's winner. Derek Waldeck sent in an in-swinger that was batted around and ultimately knocked out of the box by the Zips to Jared Gilbey, sitting 22 yards out. Gilbey one-timed it back into the penalty area and Ryan, who whipped his header off the back post and into the net for his 11th career goal and fifth game winner.

The Cardinal needed a tremendous defensive play from freshman Keegan Hughes, who grew up about two hours south of Akron in Heath, Ohio, to hang onto the win.