Charlotte Hendrix scored four goals on Wednesday in Santa Barbara High's CIF opener. (Peter Trabucco Photo)
On paper, there wasn’t much space between the sixth-seeded Santa Barbara High Dons and the seventh-seeded Edison Chargers. In the pool, the gap proved to be much wider in a 10-3 CIF victory for Santa Barbara on Wednesday in a Division-1 first-round game.
Santa Barbara shut out Edison in the first half and built a 7-0 advantage by halftime.
“I just think we came out real strong,” said Dons head coach Mark Walsh, who credited his defense with the outcome.
As a team, the Dons collected 13 steals and six field blocks. Goalie Maddie Trabucco recorded seven saves in the cage. Edison earned four 6-on-5 opportunities in the first half but failed to score on any.
“That just shows you how in tune we were on defense,” Walsh said.
Charlotte Hendrix led all scorers with four goals. Kelsey O’Brien did a little bit of everything, contributing five steals, two goals, four assists, two field blocks, and two drawn ejections.
Edison, which finishes its season with a 16-12 record, was at a disadvantage having to make a long trip after competing the previous day in a wild-card match. The Chargers came into the match as winners of 9 of their last 11 games.
Santa Barbara advances to take on third-seeded Laguna Beach on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Laguna. The Dons have beaten Laguna twice this season in two meetings.
