News|Schedule / Results|Roster|Officers &Coaches|

UCSB Sprints Past 17th Ranked Waves

Box Score

Mar. 14, 2009

Malibu, CA - Second ranked UCSB jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first 8 minutes and 21 seconds of their game at Pepperdine and never looked back on their way to an 18-10 Western Women's Lacrosse League win. The odds may have seemed to be against UCSB in some ways but it didn't show. The  Gauchos could have been distracted by the start of final exams on Monday, they were playing their third straight road game against a ranked opponent, they were missing the services of two starters, they were delayed getting out of Santa Barbara and they arrived late at Alumni Park on the Pepperdine campus. None of it mattered as UCSB was up 10-2 at half-time and then during the second half easily traded goals in runs of 1 and 2 scores at a time with a feisty opponent who kept pressuring out on defense trying to make something happen throughout the entire game.

Reserves played big roles for UCSB. Starting junior attacker Sam Lutz (San Diego, CA) and starting sophomore defender Kat Bodden (Branford, CT) were unavailable for the game. The Gauchos were even a little more short-handed than that as senior reserve midfielder Camille Elguero (Woodside, CA) had a certification course to attend and was also unavailable. Freshman Courtney Choi (San Jose, CA) stepped in for Bodden on defense and UCSB didn't miss a beat. Senior Matty Evoy-Mount (Davis, CA) took advantage of the opportunity at the offensive end of the field and drained three goals during the first 13 minutes of play. Elsewhere on the field another four Gauchos also had hat tricks to make it five UCSB players getting 3 goals apiece. Freshman Meg Cruse (San Diego, CA) was one of them and the attacker also contributed 3 assists for game high scoring honors with 6 points. The Gauchos were adept at sharing the ball with each other despite different faces running in and out of the game. Ten UCSB goals were assisted. Four scores came on free position 8 meter shots so 10 of 14 UCSB goals from the field were scored on helpers.

"I'm impressed we were so non-plussed with everything going on and put some good lacrosse together out there," said second year head coach Paul Ramsey after the game.

Perhaps even more telling than the score were the whopping 18 draw controls snagged, snared and snatched away from Pepperdine by the Gauchos. That left only 12 possessions off the center line for the Waves to work with and it wasn't enough. UCSB didn't let them keep it when they had it, either, forcing 13 turnovers out of Pepperdine while scooping up 28 ground balls. The result was UCSB outshooting Pepperdine 42-16.

Senior Selina Eadie (Davis, CA) scooped up 4 ground balls and caused 2 turnovers.  Senior Katie Moran (San Rafael, CA) led everyone in the plusses with 4 draw controls, 3 ground balls, 5 caused turnovers, 3 goals and 1 assist. Freshman goalie Jeni Centner (Tustin, CA) had 5 saves to get the win.

UCSB improved to 11-2 overall and 8-0 against WWLL teams. The Gauchos enter a week of final exams and a week of spring break without any contests. They resume play in the WDIA Division at the Western States Tournament at Stanford University April 4 - 5. Fourteenth ranked Michigan State, 21st ranked Oregon and unranked Texas are three teams in the line-up. Pepperdine dropped to 6-2 and faces 21st ranked Arizona State on Sunday in Malibu.