Surprise, Ariz. — OUAZ women's soccer turned in a dominant performance on Thursday evening, defeating Arizona Christian 4-0 at Spirit Field in Great Southwest Athletic Conference action. The victory improves the Spirit to 7-6-3 overall and 5-5-2 in GSAC play.
OUAZ controlled the match from start to finish, outshooting the Firestorm 14-8 while placing eight shots on goal and earning nine corner kicks. The Spirit defense was equally impressive, limiting Arizona Christian to just one shot on goal en route to the shutout.
The breakthrough came in the 35th minute when Madison Mendiola scored her second goal of the season off a corner-kick sequence, finishing a pass from Meredith Galus to give OUAZ a 1-0 lead.
The Spirit doubled their advantage late in the first half as Anjeli DesRosier found the back of the net in the 43rd minute. The goal was DesRosier's first of the season and came off an assist from Ailish Carey, sending OUAZ into halftime with a 2-0 cushion.
OUAZ continued to apply pressure after the break and added a third goal in the 64th minute. Finley Ali capitalized on a setup from Faith Rana for her second goal of the season, extending the Spirit lead to 3-0.
The final goal came in the 85th minute when Alee Williams converted a penalty kick for her fourth goal of the year, putting the finishing touches on a convincing conference victory.
DesRosier led the Spirit attack with three shots on goal, while Williams and Ali each added three shots. Mendiola continued her strong play from the back line, contributing the eventual game-winning goal.
Defensively, Eerika Erjansalo recorded the shutout and made the lone save required on the evening. The Spirit back line was outstanding, allowing just one shot on target and keeping Arizona Christian off the scoreboard for the full 90 minutes.
The win gives OUAZ its seventh victory of the season and keeps the Spirit in the hunt as the conference schedule enters its final stretch.
OUAZ will return to Spirit Field for the regular-season finale on Thursday, Oct. 29, when it hosts GSAC foe La Sierra. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. as the Spirit look to close the regular season on a high note.
