Bears Claim Victory Over Cougars

BERKELEY – California women’s soccer clinched a 2-1 win over No. 21 Washington State on Thursday afternoon, their second conference win of the season.
 
The Bears took an early lead in the match thanks to a goal by Keely Roy in the 10th minute. The dynamic duo of Roy and Ayo Oke struck once again, as Oke took control of the ball and chased it straight down the center of the field before making a beautiful pass to Roy who punched it squarely into the back of the net.
 
The score stayed set at 1-0 until a foul by Washington State’s Reese Tappan created an opportunity for a Cal penalty kick conversion in the 34th minute. Roy stepped up to take the shot and placed it neatly into the left side of the net to put another point on the scoreboard for the Bears. This was Roy’s fourth penalty kick conversion of the season and seventh goal overall.
 
The Bears’ defense held off the Cougars for the remaining ten minutes to keep the 2-0 advantage at the start of the second half. Cal then created the first opportunity of the second period with a shot by Mia Fontana that went over the top of the net. Back-to-back shots by Roy and Oke shortly after and a block on WSU’s first shot of the half added to the Bears’ momentum. A relentless defensive performance by Cal for 43 minutes successfully held off Washington State until the Cougars scored a late goal in the 88th minute.
 
However, the late goal wasn’t enough for the Cougars to climb back from their deficit as Cal fought hard to maintain the lead…