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UCSB Strong In Opening Win Over USC

Box Score

Jan. 26, 2013

Santa Barbara, CA - WWLL defending champion UCSB opened the 2013 season at home against the club from USC and scored 11 unanswered goals inside the first 15 minutes. It was the inaugural lacrosse game in the new UCSB FieldTurf stadium, named RecCen Field #4 for now. The full size field with permanent seating and a large scoreboard looming at one end of the field was recently completed and opened for use on January 10th. It features a regulation 120 x 70 yard women's lacrosse field, has permanent men's and women's lacrosse lines and has great sightlines for spectators.

When freshman Amanda Shoemaker  (Poway, CA) scored unassisted 14 minutes and 29 seconds into the game it put the Gauchos up 11-0. It was all UCSB right out the gate until the Gauchos eased up and slowed it down. The Trojans got on the board about 5 minutes later at 19:10 into the game on an unassisted goal by Erin McGillivray (Pleasanton, CA). By the time USC picked up their second goal with about 2 minutes remaining in the half every UCSB field player had already gotten into the game and the Gauchos went into halftime leading 12-2.

Eleven Gauchos scored a goal or more and UCSB outshot USC 26-12, scoring on 73% of their shots. The leading scorer was Gaucho freshman Charlotte Brooks (Owings Mill, MD) with 4 goals and an assist. Brooks notched 3 goals in the first half. UCSB junior Samm Wilson (San Jose, CA) had 3 goals and 9 other Gauchos contributed to the scoring on offense.

"Our shooting was dead on today and there were three or four times players were so accurate they were pinging the inside edge of the pipes," said head coach Paul Ramsey after the game.

USC goal keeper Madison Aguirre (Capistrano Beach, CA) is a good athletic goalie capable of making a lot of saves but the way UCSB was shooting there was just too much coming at her too often. Aguirre amazed as usual with her patented coast to coast runs to clear the ball upfield, in the first half and again in the second half. 

The UCSB defense had the USC offense handcuffed most of the game with an almost entirely new set of defenders compared to last season. The lone returning starter from the 2012 defense is senior Emilia Norlin (Mill Valley, CA). Freshman Morgan Ryan (Salt Lake City, UT) started in goal for the Gauchos and had 4 saves while allowing only 2 goals. Marking tightly and playing strong on ball were four more new faces on defense. Freshmen Cailan Howey (Charlotte, NC) and Nicole Rockwell (San Jose, CA) along with sophomore Alexandra Bowers (San Jose, CA) and senior Kerri Kowsky (Tustin, CA) joined Norlin. The UCSB defense held the Trojans to just 3 goals on 12 shots. Megan Hughes (Santa Ana, CA) started the second half in goal for UCSB and stopped 5 of 6 USC shots for 83.3% to close the game. 

UCSB improved to 1-0 and next hosts University of Arizona on Friday, February 1st, at 7:00pm. USC dropped to 0-1 and plays at UC San Diego on Sunday.

• Additional Photos by Santa Barbara Pix