Riverside, Calif.— The University of Hawai'i soccer team continued to make history on Friday by improving to 3-0 in the Big West Conference with a 2-0 road win at UC Riverside.
Going into the match, the Rainbow Wahine (5-6-1, 3-0) had never started the road portion of their Big West schedule with a win, entering with a 0-7 record. Due to goals by freshmen forward
Kelci Sumida and midfielder
Eliza Ammendolia, UH accomplished a piece of history while continuing their hot streak with a spotless conference record. The Highlanders (2-11-1, 0-4) have lost back-to-back matches to UH for the first time in the two team's all-time series.
UH came out in the first half controlling the tempo and outshot UCR 4-1 in the first 45 minutes of action, but the match remained tied at 0-0. The second half proved to be different as the combination of a senior and freshman led to the emergence of the first score.
Sophomore defender
Elena Palacios found Sumida in the box, feeding her for the first goal of the night in the 58th minute, tying her with sophomore forward
Kayla Ryan for the team lead in goals with three. The Highlanders mounted a comeback against the UH defense but to no avail, leaving the door open for another UH goal. Freshman midfielder
Eliza Ammendolia netted the first score of her career in the 88th minute off of an assist from sophomore forward
Daelenn Tokunaga.
Senior
Alexis Mata continued her trend of being the top goalkeeper in the conference as she recorded her fifth shutout of the season, tying her with Amanda Delgado from CSUN with the conference lead. Her 69 saves, and .821 save percentage continues to lead the Big West.
UH will head to Big West front-runner Cal State Fullerton (10-2-2, 3-0-1) for a clash on Sunday at 2 p.m. HT. The 'Bows will be looking to snap an eight-match losing streak against the Titans. The winner will hold sole possession of the No. 1 position in the conference standings.
