In the 75th minute, Jacqui Simon sent the ball into the left corner of the field, where Jessie Edmonds corralled it and crossed it into the box to a waiting Kailyn Kugler. Kugler put her head on the ball and sent it into the net for her seventh tally of the season. She had two chances at a second goal in the next 10 minutes, but Seattle U goalie Madison Goverde (Snohomish, Wash.) prevented the ball from entering the net both times.
UC Santa Barbara (7-8-2) controlled the first 13 minutes of the match, getting off four shots, including three on goal. The best chance for the Gauchos came in the 10th minute, when Edmonds sent a corner kick into the box and Alyssa Benjamin connected on a header towards the net, but the Redhawk defense was able to keep the ball from crossing the goal line. Goverde was also able to make two saves during the early portion of the match.
The Redhawks gained control and started working their own offensive plays, with back-to-back shots by Kat Prati (Moorpark, Calif.) and Kassandra Riozzi (Marysville, Wash.) turned away by Gaucho keeper Kat Serdio, earning the start on Senior Night. After a Riozzi shot sailed wide, Serdio was replaced in net by normal starting goalie Makenna Henry. The Redhawks continued to apply the offensive pressure, with Heather Thomas (Woodinville, Wash.) gaining the best opportunity in the 39th minute, but Henry kept the match scoreless with her first save of the contest.
Seattle U kept shooting towards the Gaucho goal in the second half, especially Kara Kuttler (Redmond, Wash.), who had four shots in the first 25 minutes after halftime, but one was turned away by Henry and the other three were off target. In the 71st minute, UC Santa Barbara nearly broke through, but a shot by Kylie McDonald hit the post and one from Kugler in the 72nd minute was stopped by Goverde.
"We definitely did not have our best game tonight and seemed off from the start," head coach Julie Woodward said. "Give credit to (UC) Santa Barbara as they were a great team and played with a lot of pride and heart on their senior night and battled for the win."
The shots were close to equal, with UC Santa Barbara earning a slight 12-11 advantage in total shots and a 7-4 edge in shots on goal. Goverde ended the night with five saves, while Serdio and Henry finished with two saves apiece for the Gauchos. Kuttler led all players with five shots and Riozzi added three for the Redhawks, while Kugler led UCSB with four total shots, all of them on goal.
Seattle University (9-5-1) heads to Boulder, Colo., for a Saturday morning contest against the Colorado Buffaloes beginning at 10 a.m. local time (9 a.m. Pacific time). This match was just added to give Seattle U a chance to make up for the weather-related no-contest against Cal Poly last weekend.