Emma Vanderhyden brilliantly finished a cross from Shaye Douglas in the 87th minute, lifting the UCSB women’s soccer team to 2-1 victory over UC Riverside in the Big West opener on Thursday at Harder Stadium.
Vanderhyden ran across the penalty area to meet Douglas’ bouncing pass and ripped a right-footed shot past a stunned UCR goalkeeper Cassia Souza.
The goal sequence started with Sophia Vivar delivering a back-heeled pass to Douglas, who was running down the right flank. Douglas took the ball down the line and crossed it to Vanderhyden for the finish.
The Gauchos fell behind in the 13th minute when Jazmine won a ball in midfield and fed a long through pass to Alexandra Hargrave who got behind the UCSB defense. Hargrave went one on one with goalkeeper Evann Smith and beat her with a shot inside the near post.
UCSB equalized in the 26th minute on a stellar flick of a free kick by Vivar to Douglas, who was running through the box. Douglas beat Souza with a well-placed left-footed shot inside the far post.
The win was the second straight for the Gauchos, who are 3-5-2 overall and 1-0-0 in the Big West. Riverside is 3-5-0 and 0-1-0.