Oct. 6, 2000
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The quest for a fourth straight league title is off to the right start, as the ninth-ranked Santa Clara women's soccer team shut out Gonzaga 5-0 tonight at Buck Shaw Stadium to open its West Coast Conference season.
The win extended Santa Clara's WCC winning streak to 18 victories. The Broncos have not lost a league match since a 1-0 overtime defeat to No. 3 Portland on Oct. 31, 1997. During this streak, the team has outscored the opposition 96-3 with 15 shutouts.
Santa Clara improves to 8-3-1, 1-0-0 in league play. The Broncos did not allow a Bulldog shot, blanking the Zags 22-0. That marked the first time in seven years--that's 166 matches--that Santa Clara has not allowed an opponent shot. The last time was a 3-0 victory over Oregon State on Sept. 11, 1993, when SCU outshot the Beavers by the same margin, 22-0.
For the Bulldogs, tonight's loss marks the 20th straight to a ranked opponent and drops the team to a 3-9-0 overall, 0-2-0 WCC mark. The Broncos have defeated Gonzaga in all eight of the team's meetings, allowing only one goal to the Bulldogs in 1994.
Sophomore Aly Wagner led the Broncos with four points, on one goal and two assists. She passed a short corner to senior Heather Aldama, who returned the pass for Wagner to send a hard shot into the far post at the 9:38 mark. Two minutes later, Wagner played a long ball to Aldama from midfield as she beat her defender for the goal.
Santa Clara opened the second half with a goal from freshman Kristi Candau, her fourth in three matches. She picked up a deflection from a defender and sent it past a diving Bulldog keeper.
Junior Danielle Slaton and freshman Sasha Sulkosky scored their first goals of the season. Slaton sent a short corner kick to Wagner, who passed it right back to Slaton. The Olympic silver medalist then dribbled infield and took a shot from 35 yards out that pounded the roof of the net. Sulkosky's score was a penalty kick off Zag goalie Courtney Haury.
Santa Clara closes a four-match homestand on Sun., Oct. 8, when WCC opponent Pepperdine arrives for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Buck Shaw Stadium. Santa Clara Athletics is sponsoring an SCU Faculty and Staff Day, beginning at 11 a.m. at Alumni Park.
Santa Clara 5, Gonzaga 0
Team 1 2 Final
Gonzaga 0 0 0
Santa Clara 2 3 5
Shots
Gonzaga 0
Santa Clara 22
Goalie Saves
Curtis, Gonzaga 1
Haury, Gonzaga 5
Gordon, Santa Clara 0
Sharpe, Santa Clara 0
Goal Summary
SCU Aly Wagner (Heather Aldama) 9:38 SCU, 1-0
SCU Heather Aldama (Aly Wagner) 11:56 SCU, 2-0
SCU Kristi Candau (Unassisted) 56:42 SCU, 3-0
SCU Danielle Slaton (Aly Wagner) 65:13 SCU, 4-0
SCU Sasha Sulkosky (Penalty Kick) 84:32 SCU, 5-0
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