The University of Redlands women's team scored two first half goals on Monday afternoon and edged the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs at Farquhar Field, 2-0. For the Bulldogs, it was their third-straight victory as they head into the homestretch of the regular season.
The U of R got on the board in the 15th minute when sophomore midfielder Savannah Laursen (Boise, ID) crossed a ball to the back post and found junior forward Tanya Haggen (Bellingham, WA). Haggen did well to get her head on the ball and nod it back across goal to senior defender Megan Marks (Boise, ID) who headed the ball to senior forward Nicole Fox (Cheney, WA). Fox jumped and finished the opportunity with a powerful header into the back of the net, making it 1-0 Redlands.
Sophomore midfielder Summer Norquist (Boise, ID) doubled the Bulldog advantage later in the first stanza when freshman midfielder McKenzie Oliger (Seattle, WA) laid a perfectly-weighted backwards pass to her near the 18-yard box. Norquist did not think twice and ripped a one-time rocket into the top-right corner of the goal. For Norquist, it was it was her first score on the season.
By halftime, the score remained 2-0 in favor of the Maroon and Gray. UC Santa Cruz held the slight edge in shots, 8-7, while the Bulldogs had racked up five corner kicks to just two for the Banana Slugs during the first 45 minutes.
In the second stanza, the U of R came closest to making it 3-0 when junior midfielder Kristen Arroyo (San Diego, CA) ripped a left-footed shot that looked to be heading for the top-left corner of the net, but UC Santa Cruz goalkeeper Gabby Trujilo got a hand on the shot and tipped it over the goal.
While the Banana Slugs threatened on a couple of opportunities late in the contest, the Bulldog defense held strong and secured the shutout.
Helping maintain the shutout was senior goalkeeper Sabrina Grandke-Bawab (Kirkland, WA) and sophomore goalkeeper Lexi Felix (Kailua, HI), making one save and five saves, respectively. For the goalkeeper tandem, it was their second-straight combined shutout.
On the afternoon, UC Santa Cruz outshot Redlands, 20-15, but the Bulldogs tallied seven total corner kicks to only four for the Banana Slugs. Leading the way off the bench with four shots for the Maroon and Gray was freshman forward Marissa Hammerstrom (Mercer Island, WA).
After the match, Norquist talked about the win and her first goal of the year.
The Bulldogs (5-7-3) return to action on Wednesday when they host Whittier College (1-14) at 7 p.m. at Farquhar Field.