Seniors Shine in Bulldog Women’s Soccer Victory over CMS
The University of Redlands women's soccer program recorded its first win against rival Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges since Nov. 1, 2008, ending a five-game losing streak with Saturday's 2-1 road victory. Senior forwards Fionna Connolly (Salem, OR) and Kaily Benenati (Denver, CO) stepped up for the Bulldogs during the important Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) match by registering a netter apiece in the second stanza to overcome a one-goal halftime deficit en route to the hard-fought win.
Despite out-shooting the Athenas, 7-4, in the first half, CMS' junior midfielder Maddy Shove (Portola Valley, CA) scored the first goal of the contest in the 26th minute.
However, Redlands responded just six minutes into the second half when Connolly took advantage of the Athena goalkeeper coming off her line. She chipped a shot into the back of the net to tie up the score at one apiece.
The Bulldogs continued to look dangerous on the offensive side of the ball and finally capitalized at the 74th minute mark as Benenati collected her second game-winning goal of the season. Freshman forward Sierra Duarte (Portland, OR) provided a nicely slotted through-ball, resulting in the rookie's third assist of the season.
Sophomore goalkeeper Sabrina Grandke-Bawab (Kirkland, WA) notched her third win of her young Redlands career, stopping two shots in the second half. Junior goalkeeper Linzey Smith (Anaheim Hills, CA) patrolled the net for the opening 45 minutes.
The U of R (5-3-1, 2-3-0 SCIAC) faces off against the Leopards of the University of La Verne on Wednesday. Kick-off is set for 7 p.m. at Damien High School while work continues on the La Verne facilities.
