Gauchos beat Spartans for 2-0 start

The Saddleback women's soccer team defeated MiraCosta College on Friday, 1-0, in Oceanside.  The Gauchos scored in the opening minutes and held the Spartans in check.

Emilee Monnig scored the lone goal in the fourth minute off a pass from Rachel Edelstein (pictured).   Little did people know at the time after a blowout win on Tuesday, but it would end up being the only goal of the game as Saddleback controlled the play but was unable to connect for any more scores the rest of the day.  Saddleback had at least three more good scoring chances in the opening 15 minutes, but came up empty in settling for a 1-0 win.

"We controlled play in their end for most of the game and had some good offensive sequences but didn't convert," head coach BJ McNicol said. 

Saddleback had a tense moment in the in the final minutes when MiraCosta made a charge in an attempt to steal a tie.  However, keeper Dz-Rae Jara came up with a big save, pushing a long shot by the Spartans off the crossbar to preserve the shutout.  It was one of three saves on the day for Jara, who played all 90 minutes.

Saddleback is now 2-0 after the win and will have their home-opener on Tuesday when they host Mt. San Jacinto College.  The kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 PM.