THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - The Cal Lutheran women's soccer team fired away early and often against Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) opponent Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, but ended up battling to a 1-1 tie after two scoreless overtime periods on Saturday night at Rolland Stadium.
The Regals rifled off a season-high 29 shot attempts in the game, the most since they tallied the same amount in a matchup against La Verne in 2011.
Raquel Weckhurst got the shots started in just the fifth minute, angling a shot from the right side that led to a diving save from the CMS keeper.
The Violet and Gold offense pressed early on as CLU controlled the tempo and possession of the match. The first great look at goal came in the 17th minute when Bianca Deardorff crossed the ball into the box and Weckhurst flipped a shot over the goalie's head, but just a bit too high as the ball went over the goal.
CMS had a chance later in the first half with a deep shot that Regals keeper Coral Hasley leaped up to save with her outstretched hand.
Despite 21 total shots from both teams, the game would remain scoreless at the half.
In the 59th minute, however, CLU would break through for the first goal of the game. Less than one minute after subbing back into the game, Weckhurst received a pass from Mallory Carcich, and popped a shot over the goal from close range to give the Regals a 1-0 lead. The goal was Weckhurst's seventh of the season and she now leads the SCIAC with six goals in conference play.
The exhilaration from the large crowd on hand was short lived as CMS answered with a goal of their own just one minute later. Ellen Berkley drilled a shot from distance, and this time the ball would find the back of the net for the equalizer.
Nearing the end of regulation, the Athenas continued to press in their attacking third, but the Regals defense held their ground. Carcich came through with a big defensive play to prevent a goal, along with Olivia Leyva, and Hasley made key save after save to send the game into overtime.
The first overtime period saw just four total shots, two from each team, whereas CLU launched four in the second frame but neither team could gain the upper hand.
The Regals outshot CMS 29-18 and held a 9-5 advantage on corner kicks. Weckhurst led all players in the game with eight shots and Deardorff tallied seven. Kali Youngdahl added four shots and a total of 11 Regals fired a shot in the game. Hasley notched a career-high eight saves in front of the net and tied for game-high honors with CMS keeper, Kelly McConnell, who registered eight saves as well.
Cal Lutheran (3-4-1, 2-1-1 SCIAC) heads back out on the road for a conference matchup against Whittier on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 7:00 p.m.
Box Score: CLU 1, CMS 1 - 2OT
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