WAIPAHU, O'ahu — The University of Hawai'i women's soccer team took a big step toward a postseason berth with a 1-0 win over UC Santa Barbara to open the final homestand of the regular season on Thursday at Waipi'o Peninsula Soccer Complex.
 
Rainbow Wahine sophomore Cate Sheahan, UH's assists leader entering the match, was on the finishing end of the lone goal of the evening. Sheahan broke the scoreless tie in the 76^th minute with her second goal of the season off an assist from senior Eliza Ammendolia.
 
UH goalkeeper Sophie Augustin made two saves in her second shutout of the season, including a leaping save with less than six minutes remaining to protect the lead.
 
UH's first win over UCSB since 2017 gave the Rainbow Wahine (5-5-3 overall, 4-3-1 Big West) three more points in the conference standings, raising their total to 13. UH remained alone in fifth place and can clinch one of the six berths into the Big West Championship with a win or a tie in its final two matches or a UC Riverside loss or a tie.
 
The Rainbow Wahine face first-place Cal Poly on Sunday in their regular-season home finale. They'll close the regular season at fourth-place Long Beach State on Oct. 26.
 
Neither UH nor UCSB mustered much offense early in Thursday's match with each taking one shot in the first 20 minutes and they went into halftime still scoreless.
 
The shutout continued deep into the second half until the decisive sequence with just under 15 minutes to play. UH freshman Izzy Ayala fed Ammendolia at midfield and the senior slotted a pass to her left to Sheahan, who drilled her shot past the charging goalkeeper for the go-ahead goal.
 
Augustin's leaping tip of a long-range shot in the final minutes highlighted her second clean sheet in the last three matches.
 
The Rainbow Wahine close the homestand with Sunday's match with Cal Poly at 4 p.m. Six UH players — Mia Foster, Maya Gonzalez, Chaima Khammar, Brynn Mitchell, Nohara Takayama and Fabiola Zamora — will be honored in the Senior Night ceremony to follow the match.