EUGENE, Ore. – For the tenth-straight regular season, the Corban University Women's Soccer team has defeated I-5 rival Bushnell University in their Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) matchup, as they traveled down to Eugene and dealt out a 3-1 loss to the Beacons to kick the conference schedule off with a victory.
"We couldn't ask for a better start to our conference play" Warriors' head coach Travez Whyte exclaimed. "Everyone showed up today to battle and implement all we have been learning from preseason! We were missing some key players, but it was fun to see others rise up and lead. Huge shoutout to Alysia and Maya who are always creating magic up top for us! This group is special and I'm grateful for our staff and every player. Many thanks as well to our traveling Warriors!"
This marks the Warriors' (4-2-1, 1-0-0) tenth-consecutive win against the Beacons (2-5-0, 0-1-0) dating back to the 2016 season, where they've only allowed three goals to Bushnell in ten 90-minute contests. For reference, the Corban defense has on average allowed 0.3 goals per game against their Willamette Valley rivals, the lowest against any CCC opponent over a ten-game stretch.
Back-to-back scoreless matchups in Washington didn't extend to a third game for senior forward Alysia Alvarado, as she made Swiss cheese of Bushnell's backline in the 27th minute by dribbling past numerous defenders, including the goalkeeper, before her second touch off the post found the back of the net for her fifth goal of the season.
Not even an entire minute before checking into her first collegiate soccer match, true freshman midfielder Marley Holden found fellow freshman forward Maya Alston just outside the penalty box, where Alston ripped a shot up and over the goalkeeper to double Corban's lead at 2-0 before the halftime buzzer. This marks the first assist of Holden's college career and the fourth goal of the young season for Alston, who scored her first career brace this past Saturday.
Following the halftime break, the Beacons' jumped on the scoreboard in the 63rd minute after the Warriors failed to clear the ball from their own defensive half, allowing forward Ruby Daniels to score on a touch from defender Destiny Navarrete.
Ten minutes later, Alston and Alvarado combined for the Navy and Gold's third goal of the game, as Alvarado sent a long ball deep into the Beacons' defense where she found Alston ahead of the competition all alone. A pair of jukes later and Alston powered her fifth goal of the year past the diving reach of Bushnell's goalkeeper, tying Alvarado for the team-high mark as a true freshman.
The Warriors' defense pitched a shutout for the remainder of the contest to secure a conference-opening victory 3-1 on the road and will have over a week to prepare for their next regular season matchup. Alston controlled the pace of play to secure her second brace in a three-game stretch, with both the true freshman and Alvarado climbing the leaderboards to share the conference lead in goals with five apiece. The offensive stars each had three shots apiece today, all coming on goal. Five different Beacons each registered a single shot.
Defensively, sophomore goalkeeper Ava Hayes picked up her fourth winning decision of the season after allowing one goal with three saves, while her counterparts, Beacon goalkeepers Lexi Bates and Ana Augusto, split the two halves in-between the posts and allowed two and one goals, respectively. Bates secured four saves, while Augusto had just one.
After nearly a month of playing on the road, the Corban women's soccer team returns to the Outdoor Athletic Complex next Friday for their first home conference matchup of the season, with Oregon Tech (4-1-1, 0-0-0) making the trip from the Klamath Basin for a 12pm kickoff.
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