SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The UC Santa Barbara Women's Soccer team earned their first win of the season. The Gauchos were powered by freshman Devin Greer who scored not one but two goals for the Gauchos, while goalkeeper Maddie Buckley earned her third consecutive clean sheet.
FROM HEAD COACH PAUL STUMPF
On the teams first win: "It is a huge release of pressure," explained Stumpf. "We have played five games to this point and getting this first one relives a lot of pressure for everyone. Finally getting a couple of goals on the scoreboard is very important. This is also our third shutout in a row, so that is also a recipe for success moving forward."
On Greer's performance: "We have very high expectations for Devin, and she has high expectations for herself," said Stumpf. "I think the new system has benefited not only Devin, but you saw Isabella Ong get a couple of assists."
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was all Gauchos from beginning to end on Sunday afternoon. Within the first 10 minutes of game play, UC Santa Barbara had five shots in the contest. A fortunate bounce off a Jessica Carlton blocked shot found an open Devin Greer who netted her first collegiate goal to give the Gauchos an early 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.
The Gauchos continued to create scoring chances throughout the first half, but unfortunately could not find the back of the net. A
Zoe Franks shot in the 26th minute had goal written all over it before the San Jose State keeper went full extension to make a miraculous save. A couple other shots late in the half sailed high and the Gauchos went into half up 1-0.
Santa Barbara wasted no time getting back on the board in the second half.
O'Callaghan Liu broke free and sent a rocket to the top part of the goal beating the keeper and putting the Gauchos up 2-0. The run was made possible by
Isabella Ong's pass. Her first of two assists on the day.
Less than 10 minutes later UC Santa Barbara extended their lead even more. After forcing a turnover at midfield,
Isabella Ong sent
Devin Greer on a run.Greer got behind the defense and met the keeper one-on-one and sent a shot to the left post to beat her extending the Gaucho lead, 3-0.
Maddie Buckley and the Gauchos backline held on to record their third consecutive clean sheet. Buckley also extended her shutout streak to 315 minutes in net. The 3-0 final score earns the Gauchos their first win of the season.
UP NEXT
UC Santa Barbara will head to New Mexico to take on the Lobos at 6:30 PT on Thursday, Sept. 5. The Gauchos and Lobos can be watched through the Mountain West Network.
