After a shaky second-half start, No. 8 Westmont Women’s Soccer (4-1-1) recorded their fourth win in a row, defeating William Jessup (3-2-2) by a score of 4-2.
Aolani Rueff recorded three assists on the day, sparking her team’s comeback.
“Today’s game was a bit of a mix of emotions,” said Westmont head coach Kristi Kiely. “There were moments of frustration and panic, but the important thing is that we came back and we came back with force and conviction and I think a lot of authority.”
Before five minutes had passed, the Warriors led 1-0, courtesy of an own goal by William Jessup.
“The ball was played in wide to Amanda Diesen,” reported Kiely. “Amanda took a couple of dribbles and then looked to cross it in. The defender stuck her foot out and deflected it into the back of the net.”
The 1-0 score stood for the rest of the half, but the second half would see William Jessup score twice in the first 15 minutes. The first Jessup goal came in the 57th minute, the result of a penalty kick.
“William Jessup played the ball over distance and it bounced within our 18,” said Kiely. “(Goalkeeper) Lindsey (Smith) came out, making it a 50-50 ball. She knocked down a William Jessup player in the process of coming out and the referee called a PK.
Less than four minutes later, William Jessup took a 2-1 lead.
“One of our defenders was trying to shield out, but the William Jessup player got around her and shot it past Lindsey,” said Kiely. “It was a nice finish for William Jessup, but there are two things we need to adjust on that play and be better at next time.
“After William Jessup’s second goal, we were in a panic mode for a couple of minutes. We were trying to get the players to just calm down because we still had 30 minutes left. I think Lani Rueff changed the game for us. She triggered the change. Sometimes you need a spark plug to bring a lot of energy, sometimes you need someone to calm you down a bit and get you sorted out. I think she did both. She got us equal again just by sheer work rate. Lani was a game changer today.”
With 20 minutes remaining in regulation, the Warriors acquired the equalizer off of the foot of Ashley Correa.
“We were going at them with a lot of urgency and a determination to get forward,” said Kiely. “They brought a defender back in to man-mark Lani. She was able to get through two defenders, get the ball to the line and cut it in. Then she picked Ashley out and Ashley finished with a ball to the near post inside of 10 yards.”
With 7:52 remaining on the clock, Kaci Mexico poked in what would prove to be the winning goal.
“Lani went down line again and then crossed it in to Kaci on the ground,” noted Kiely. “Kaci finished in the center of the goal, from about eight yards out.”
Within three minutes, the Warriors made it a 4-2 game.
“Lani was still doubled team, which exposed the middle of the field,” said Kiely. “Lani was smart enough to find Alison wide open just outside the 18. Alison finished from 18-20 yards out, hitting the upper-V. Lani had the maturity and game sense to recognize that since she was double-teamed someone was open. Lani was able to lay it off and Alison was able to finish it for a beautiful goal.
“I am proud of the team for being able to come from behind,” expressed Kiely. “We shouldn’t have been behind but we were and we dealt with it and were able to finish the game. The last eight minutes were some of the best soccer we’ve played all season. It took us a while, but we figured it out.”
Next up for the Warriors is a challenging road trip to Cal State San Marcos (3-2-1) on Tuesday. The Cougars, ranked at number 12 in the NAIA, will be looking to settle a score with the Warriors. Westmont defeated San Marcos 1-0 in the opening round game of the NAIA tournament last year on the Cougar’s home field. Mexico headed in a corner kick from Correa with less than two minutes remaining in the second overtime period, sending Westmont to the second round and ending San Marcos’ season. Tuesday’s game is scheduled to being at four o’clock.
