The Wildcats followed up the 6-0 loss at Stanford with a 2-1 loss to the Golden Bears
Anyone looking for a silver lining in Arizona soccer’s trip to the Bay Area can point to the fact that the Wildcats played their style of soccer with more success at California than at Stanford. Unfortunately, that won’t matter in the standings after Arizona took another hit with a 2-1 loss to the Golden Bears in Berkeley on Sunday afternoon.
It was a thoroughly disappointing weekend. The Wildcats had their worst loss in over a decade in a 6-0 manhandling at the hands of Stanford on Thursday. They followed that up by falling behind by a goal in the third minute, then letting Cal double the lead in the 27th minute.
The first goal came off a play that didn’t seem incredibly dangerous. It was a long shot taken from way outside the box, but it found its way past a diving Olivia Ramey to give the Bears a very early lead.
Arizona created chances in the early going. The Wildcats had two shots on goal in the first seven minutes and four in the first half, but they couldn’t put anything away.
Meanwhile, Cal took advantage of an Arizona mistake to go up 2-0 in the 27th minute. As Arizona started its possession in the back, Trinity Dorsey was relieved of the ball. She then pulled the Cal player down by the jersey, resulting in a set piece just outside the box. The kick was on point and the header was in the net.
Unlike its game at Stanford on Thursday, Arizona was able to play its possession style through midfield for much of the game. There was plenty of space to pass, and the Wildcats made solid passes. They just couldn’t close the deal.
Arizona finally broke through with its first goal of the weekend in the 59th minute. Lily Boydstun scored her second goal as a Wildcat to make it a 2-1 match. It tied Boydstun for the team lead in goals and gave her the lead in points.
Arizona had a few chances to level things in the second half, including in the waning minutes of the match. It came up empty each time to drop its record to 3-2 on the season.
The Wildcats were outshot 18-13. Cal put nine shots on goal compared to five for Arizona. The Bears also earned six corners versus two for their visitors.
Arizona will try to get back on the right track this week with Denver and Pepperdine coming to Tucson.
Category: General Sports
