A 79th-minute goal by senior midfield Jessica Carlton lifted UCSB women’s soccer to a 1-0 victory over Cal Poly in the Big West opener and Blue-Green Rivalry matchup on Thursday night at Alex G. Spanos Stadium.
The win is the first for the Gauchos over the Mustangs since 2015, and they did it on a rainy night in San Luis Obispo. It also kicked off Big West play on a high note and improved UCSB’s overall record to 3-3-4 simultaneously.
“It took us a little bit to get used to the conditions. their field is flat and fast like we like, but it was lightning fast tonight,” UCSB head coach Paul Stumpf said. “Truly a gritty result and if you don’t give up a goal, it’s a real recipe for success.
“We found a way to break through with about 10 minutes to go and we just held on. I am super proud of all of them.”
After Cal Poly missed wide on its first shot attempt of the night off the face off, the Gauchos settled in and found some strong scoring opportunities.
A shot off a corner kick from Isabella Ong ricocheted off the Cal Poly goalkeeper and to the feet of Emma Corcoran, who fired a shot that went just right to keep the game scoreless.
The Mustangs then went on the attack, but the UCSB defense stood strong as Maddie Buckley and the Gaucho backline tallied two saves to send the game to halftime still tied at 0-0.
The second half was much slower than the first, as there were just three shots in the first 30 minutes of the half.
In the 79th minute, the Gauchos were awarded a throw-in from 25 yards out, which Emily Caughey tossed to Jaclyn Degidio.
Degidio then played it back to Caughey, who lofted a stellar cross into the middle of the box, where Carlton was waiting unmarked.
Carlton then beat the Cal Poly keeper and slotted the ball into the back of the net for what proved to be the game-winner.
“The ball had been in the corner for a while and I saw our players wanting to play that ball early on,” Carlton said of the play. “Coach kept saying how he wanted his attacking midfielders in the box and I found a pocket and was ready to go when I got the ball.”
The Mustangs outshot UCSB in the matchup by a margin of 10-7. However, the difference came in the net as Gaucho goalkeeper Maddie Buckley came away with five saves in the clean sheet.
UCSB will continue the Big West season against UC San Diego next Thursday at 6 p.m. at Harder Stadium.