Orange Coast College

Women's soccer opens OEC with convincing win over Saddleback

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

COSTA MESA - To say that the Orange Coast College women's soccer had a "few" scoring opportunities on Tuesday is about as understated as saying the ocean is "slightly" wet.
Peppering the visiting Saddleback Gauchos with 28 shots, the Pirates breezed past the Gauchos 2-0 in both teams' Orange Empire Conference opener at LeBard Stadium.
But, with that high a shot total, it left coach Kevin Smith slightly perplexed afterward. "Twenty-eight shots and only two goals?" Smith asked. "I like our effort, but we need to do a better job of decision-making with the ball. 'Who do I pass it to?' 'When I get the ball, which way to I go?' 'Take the shot or make one more pass?' All of these types of questions will hopefully be answered with some more playing experience."
In a game played primarily on Saddleback's side of the field, multiple scoring opportunities went by the boards as the Gauchos (2-3, 0-1) escaped the first half with a scoreless tie.
"The game had the same type of feel that the Palomar game had last week," Smith said in reference to OCC's 1-0 win last week. "A ton of time in their zone, but nothing to show for it."
Whatever adjustments were made, they worked as OCC came out and took the lead for good in the fourth minute of the second half when Stacey Shoop took a pass from Ashley Boyer, then returned the favor and fed the streaking Boyer on a nice give-and-go. Boyer picked the lower-right corner of the goal and hit her target as OCC took a 1-0 lead.
That lead doubled just one minute later as Diana Johnson hit Allie Nelson with a pass, then Nelson dribbled down the right side and hit a perfect shot into the upper-left corner of the goal from just inside the 18-yard box to wrap up the scoring.
Hard-working Gaucho goalie Melisa Campagna finished with 11 saves, while Katie Johnson recorded three for OCC (4-2, 1-0).
"I've been very impressed with how consistent our defense has been," Smith said. "We're very stubborn with the ball when we have it down low and we've shown a ton of patience and composure back there."
OCC returns to action on Friday in an OEC matchup at Santa Ana. Game time is set for 3 p.m.