1-3-1, 0-0-0BWC
Pepperdine
1-3-1, 0-0-0WCC
Cal Poly Picks Up 2-1 Win Over Pepperdine in Home Opener
9/6/2019 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Cal Poly underclassmen Kylie Rojas and Sidra Bugsch each scored a goal on Friday night, while senior goalkeeper Sophia Brown made 10 saves, leading the Mustang women's soccer team to a 2-1 win over Pepperdine in the home opener at Alex G. Spanos Stadium.
Play remained scoreless all the way until less than a minute remained to halftime. Then just under 25 seconds away from intermission, Rojas, a true freshman out of Castro Valley High, found the go-ahead moment. Rojas recovered a loose ball above the top-right perimeter of the 18-yard box, made a quick maneuver to her left to shake her defender, took a few steps and blasted a left-footed strike into the top-right corner of the goal above the extended reach of leaping Wave goalkeeper Kinsey Ehmann.
It was the first collegiate tally for Rojas (Hayward, Calif.), who last year won the Foothill League Player of the Year award and came to the Mustangs from the San Jose Earthquakes Development Academy.
Pepperdine held a 7-5 advantage in total shot attempts at the break.
Cal Poly doubled the lead five-&-a-half minutes after returning to the pitch, earning a left-centered free kick 2 yards above the penalty area stemming from a Wave foul.
The Mustang formation broke to open a lane down the middle for Bugsch, and the sophomore from Davis ripped a right-footed strike just to the right of the Pepperdine wall, bouncing to the left of Ehmann inside the far post for the 2-0 lead. It, too, marked the first collegiate goal for Bugsch, a starter in all five matches for Cal Poly so far this season.
Pepperdine, however, which two weeks ago was ranked No. 22 in the Coaches Top 25 poll, didn't take long to answer. Seven minutes afterward (56'), Brie Welch, the Waves' leading scorer with two goals in 2019, sent a cross in from the left side of the box for Leyla McFarland right at the goalmouth. McFarland, a sophomore from Bonita, capitalized from point-blank range, making it 2-1.
From there, the Waves (1-3-1) kept applying pressure in search of the equalizer, but Cal Poly (1-3-1) held, moving to 16-10-2 all-time in home openers.
In the final 34 minutes as Pepperdine looked to pull level, Brown made six saves, including an 86th-minute stop of a rebounded attempt after a Hailey Stenberg header ricocheted off the crossbar.
Brown, with her double-digit save effort, moved to a career total of precisely 300 saves, just seven back of No. 2 in school history.
In a physical match that saw a combined 27 fouls and four yellow cards, the Waves finished with a 20-9 overall advantage in shots, while corner kicks were even at 3 apiece on the evening.
The Mustangs face another WCC opponent this weekend, traveling south to take on San Diego on Sunday afternoon. Kickoff at Torero Stadium is set for 2:30 p.m. on WCC-TV.
Photos Courtesy of Nathan Nybakke/805 Photography
Team Stats
Rojas, Kylie (1)
Assisted By: Rubinstein, Brooke
GOAL by Cal Poly Rojas, Kylie (FIRST GOAL), Assist by Rubinstein, Brooke, goal number 1 for season.
44:38
Bugsch, Sidra (1)
GOAL by Cal Poly Bugsch, Sidra, goal number 1 for season.
49:30
McFARLAND, Leyla (2)
Assisted By: WELCH, Brie
GOAL by Pepperdine McFARLAND, Leyla, Assist by WELCH, Brie, goal number 2 for season.
56:07
