Goals by Aolani Rueff and Ashley Correa were all Westmont needed to pick up a 2-0 Golden State Athletic Conference win over Biola (5-5-1, 2-2) on Saturday at Thorrington Field.
The shutout was the third in a row for the No. 15 Warriors (7-3-1, 3-1 GSAC), who have outscored their opponents 8-0 over the last three games.
Westmont allowed the Eagles just one shot on goal and just five shots total. The Warriors accumulated 17 shots, seven of which were on target. The defensive performance came despite losing senior All-American center back Alison Hensley to an injury during warm-up for the game.
“I am very proud of the team to stay disciplined and to stay composed after Alison went down,” said Westmont head coach Kristi Kiely. “Alison brings a sense of security and composure. But our back line was solid. I thought that was tremendous.”
Hensley’s prognosis for return is unknown.
Kiely also had high praise for sophomore Courtney Stonesifer. “I thought Courtney played absolutely fantastic for us,” said the coach. “She defended well; she was solid in ball winning and solid in distribution. We had a tough time organizationally in the first half at moments, making sure Biola was accounted for. Courtney stepped in in ways that kept us organized, calmed and composed. She took care of what could have been a dangerous front line from Biola.”
The Warriors’ first goal came in the 11th minute of play. Rueff received a pass on the left flank and dribbled toward the center of the field before passing off to Mallory Mitchell on the right. Mitchell dribbled to the end line, the crossed the ball back past the goal to where Rueff had run. Rueff used just one touch to redirect the ball into the upper corner of the net.
“I thought it was a beautiful ball across by Mallory and then an absolutely beautiful finish by Aolani,” said Kiely.
The second goal came in the 38th minute. Rueff received a pass on the left side, dribbled toward the goal while fighting off a defender and then passed the ball in front of the goal to Correa. Correa fired from two yards out to give Westmont a 2-0 lead before halftime.
“Aolani could have easily gone down, but she shrugged her defender off,” said Kiely. “Ashley was right there for the finish. Our dynamic duo (Rueff and Correa) was very dynamic today.”
