SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – For the second straight game, the UC Santa Barbara Women's Soccer team had a goal called off, but after review was deemed a good goal. This time,
Hayden Halscheid was called offside, but after review was ruled onside and netted the lone goal of the game to give the Gauchos their second consecutive win.
FROM HEAD COACH PAUL STUMPF
"Winning games at this level is very difficult," said Stumpf. We have a very clear style of play which we are trying to bring to life. That is, possession, relentless and progressive. I thought we did a very good job bringing that to life. If you win a game at this level, you do way more right than wrong. Overall, I am happy about the performance."
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first half was a battle of the midfield. The Gauchos controlled much of the possession but only mustered up two shots. In total, there were three shots between the two teams in the first 45 minutes. The Gauchos did not lack aggressiveness, as they were called for four offsides, all in the attacking third of the field. They also recorded four corners in the first half, but were unable to capitalize on those. At the end of the first half, it was tied 0-0.
To open the second half, San Jose State had a wonderful look on net, but
Maddie Buckley got both hands on it and stopped it. In the following two UC Santa Barbara possessions, the Gauchos were called for offside on both. On the next possession for the Gauchos,
Alondra Talamantes had the best look at goal, taking a shot from point-blank range; this time the Spartan goalkeeper stopped it and saved the shot.
For the majority of the second half, San Jose State had a lot of the momentum. In the second half, they outshot the Gauchos 10-5. Only three of those shots were on net, and Buckley made sure to stop all three.
In the 87
th minute,
Allison Gonzalez found
Caitlyn Simons on a run in the middle of the field in the attacking third. Simons then placed a perfect ball to
Hayden Halscheid, who finished the play by finding the back of the net. Unfortunately, the Assistant Referee ruled it offside, the Gauchos' ninth of the game. For the second consecutive game, a goal that was scored by the Gauchos was ruled a no-goal and went to review.
Following a very quick review, the no-goal was overturned to a good goal, giving the Gauchos a lead with less than three minutes to play. Santa Barbara held on and improved to 2-0 with another one-goal victory.
UP NEXT
The Gauchos will have two days to prepare for Fresno State as they host the Bulldogs on Sunday, Aug. 23. The game will be Alumnae Day at Harder Stadium as the Gauchos will recognize former players and their contributions to the program. For those unable to attend, the game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats available through ucsbgauchos.com/WSOCLiveStats.
