THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - The No. 15 Cal Lutheran women's soccer team grinded out a 2-1 victory over Redlands in its Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) opening match on Wednesday night inside Rolland Stadium.
After thirty minutes of scoreless action, Nikole Prelooker found a seam for the Regals and fired a shot on target that was deflected by the Bulldogs goalkeeper. With the ball rolling towards her, Kali Youngdahl swooped in on a dead run and poked the ball into the back of the net to give CLU a 1-0 lead.
Early in the second half, however, Redlands would deliver an equalizer as Faith Campbell tapped a pass in the box to Lauren Bay who put it away to the top left corner of the goal.
The Regals nearly took the lead moments later on a well-executed set piece that saw Youngdahl's shot bounce off the cross bar and a follow-up header by Sarah Tadeusiak go into the hands of the keeper.
CLU would have its chance in the 82nd minute after Ryley Settles got knocked down in the box, leading to a crucial penalty kick. Calm and collected, Youngdahl stepped up and drove a shot under the outstretched arms of the goalie to put the Regals up for good 2-1.
Youngdahl had a game-high seven shots while Nikole Prelooker, Riley Martin and Bri Pinal each tallied two. Coral Hasley logged all 90 minutes in front of the net for CLU and earned her fourth win of the season. Overall, the Regals outshot the Bulldogs 18-6.
Cal Lutheran (5-0) will hit the road to take on Claremont-Mudd-Scripps this Saturday, Sept. 17 at 7:00 p.m.
Box Score: CLU 2, UR 1
CLU Twitter: https://twitter.com/clusports
CLU Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clusports
CLU Instagram: http://instagram.com/clusports#
