Arizona soccer: Wildcats fall to Pepperdine
Backline U defense hold out for first half; second half goals doom UA team
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Ary Frank/Arizona AthleticsFifth-year player Iliana Hocking played 52 minutes in Sunday's match
A Sunday afternoon at Mulcahy Stadium match between the University of Arizona Wildcats soccer team and #10 Pepperdine ended with the Cats on the wrong end of a 2 - 0 scoreline.
In the first half, Pepperdine attacked in, appropriately enough, waves, but had few real looks at goal. A flurry of shots in the opening moments was followed by a long stretch of stymied offensive plays. Despite breaking up the occasional play, Arizona was only able to get up field for two shots.
The second half saw Arizona do a bit better on getting the ball upfield, but Pepperdine earned a penalty after a collision in the box in minute 55. Pepperdine’s Carlee Giammona got it past Hope Hisey.
The Waves built on the lead in minute 81 with a goal from Tori Waldeck. By that time, Arizona’s offense seemed out of gas.
The team was shut out, but there were a few good performances.
“It’s discouraging…but at the end of the day there are a lot of really positive things in this game. This is probably the toughest team we’ve played so far. It’s a great test for us to get ready for the PAC-12,” said coach Becca Moros. “Our organization in the back line was good, but our biggest weakness was our turnovers.”
There was a bit more fight from the team in the second half with the team bringing the ball into Pepperdine’s final third more often than in the first. As the half wore on, there was less and less offense, however.
“As we started to get heavy legs, things started to slow down,” said midfielder Gianna Christensen. “The heat and all, we were getting tired pressing them…we’ll learn from that.”
The final match for the Wildcats before they start their PAC-12 schedule will be next Sunday against UC Davis.
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