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 s

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