Women’s soccer breaks through Oregon State defense to win 1-0
Senior forward Darian Jenkins scored the lone goal – her seventh of the season – on a set piece in No. 11 UCLA’s 1-0 victory over unranked Oregon State. The Bruins will take on Oregon on Sunday in the back end of their weekend series. (Aubrey Yeo/Daily Bruin senior staff)
By Savannah Shapiro
Sept. 30, 2016 1:59 a.m.
There would be no upset this time around in Corvallis.
One goal in the 27th minute was the only one that No. 11 UCLA (8-2-0, 2-0 Pac-12) needed en route to extend its winning streak to five games.
After coming off a minor injury last game against Arizona State, senior forward Darian Jenkins found the back of the net with a header off a free kick from junior defender MacKenzie Cerda, sending the Bruins to a 1-0 win over the unranked Beavers (5-4-2, 0-2-0 Pac-12).
[Related: UCLA handles Arizona State 2-0 at home]
“Darian’s goal was key,” said coach Amanda Cromwell. “Oregon State defends very well; they are very organized. They came out in the second half and chased and pressed and played very direct.”
Jenkins’ goal proved to be momentous for the game’s entirety and gave her seven on the season. The senior also led the Bruins with five shots in the game. Attempting to break Oregon State’s 4-4-2 defense forced UCLA to rely heavily upon quality passes and off-ball runs. Though it proved to be more difficult to crack the Beavers’ defense in the second half, the Bruins’ defense was able to hold the pushing offense of the opposing team.
[Related: UCLA’s defense holds tough despite injuries]
“We did great in the first half. Probably should have had more than one goal because we had a lot of great chances, but kind of lost composure in the second half,” Cromwell said.
Oregon State had multiple scoring opportunities during the second half of play but could not convert. Its biggest opportunity came late in regulation.
With only 15 minutes left to play, UCLA was called for a handball, giving Oregon State yet another opportunity to tie the game. However, the Beavers were unable to convert on the penalty kick as the ball barely missed the net, hitting the crossbar and preserving UCLA’s one goal lead. Freshman goalkeeper Teagan Micah was credited with two saves in her sixth shutout of the year.
“They actually missed a penalty kick that was called for a handball, so that was a little bit of a bullet there, but overall, it’s good to get a win on the road,” Cromwell said.
UCLA outshot Oregon State 11-3 in the first period, yet fell short in the second half as the Beavers outshot the Bruins 6-5.
Looking ahead to Eugene
The Bruins will attempt to extend their winning streak Sunday afternoon against the Oregon Ducks as they continue Pac-12 play. The Ducks are 6-4-1 overall and 0-2-0 in conference matches this year, dropping their most recent game to USC 3-1. Oregon’s attack is led by forward Kyra Fawcett and midfielder Jayne Lydiatt, who share the team lead with three goals each.
“We got some players on the field tonight that played well,” Cromwell said. “Hopefully we are learning from these experiences and get better going against Oregon.”
