EL CAJON – Kelsey Steck provided all three Warrior goals as #2 Westmont (7-1, 2-0 GSAC) defeated San Diego Christian (2-3-1, 0-1) in a Golden State Athletic Conference game at Cuyamaca Community College. This is the second time in her career that Steck has recorded a hat trick and it is the 15th hat trick in Warrior history. Steck’s other three-point game was against Arizona Christian on October 19, 2013.
“Kelsey got two pretty quickly and they were two very good goals,” said Westmont head coach Kristi Kiely. “Destinee Adams came into the game and had a presence right away. Destinee elevated and had a flick on that went off the keeper. Kelsey was able to finish in the side netting calm, composed, but with authority.”
Steck’s second goal, which came less than four minutes later, was a header off a corner kick from Mallory Mitchell.
“The last few games we have been getting a lot of (balls crossed into) in the box and not getting on the end,” said Kiely. “We have been working on that a lot and it was great to see Kelsey receive the fruit from her labor.”
Within the first five minutes of the second half, San Diego Christian stuck twice to even the score. In the 49th minute, Sammantha Schmidt scored on a corner from Brittany Beam. In the 50th minute, Vivian Oray delivered a shot from the center of the field into the left corner.
“We started the second half kind of flat,” acknowledged Kiely. “We were reacting more to what they were doing than setting a tempo ourselves. San Diego Christian was a tough side. They have a couple of pretty good players and they were ready for us today.”
It would take the Warriors another 25 minutes to record the winning goal.
“Kelsey’s third goal was great,” said Kiely. “Tiffany Dimaculangan saw her and played her through; then Kelsey took the keeper. I was really proud of Kelsey to get all three goals in the style with which she got them.
“I think Tiffany was the player of the game,” offered Kiely. “She got us fired up when we needed to, she set Kelsey up for the game winner, she won 50-50 balls and she worked from the 18 to the 18 in the heat without a single sub.”
Next up for the Warriors is a match-up with The Master’s Mustangs on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
