Women's soccer drops home opener

As they tried to get off to a powerful start, the Lady Corsairs raced up the field and pushed forward to the Wolverines' goal line with great force.

On the defensive end, Monique Boe, Santa Monica College's goalkeeper, tried valiantly to defend the Lady Corsairs' goal, but could not stop Wolverine Carissa Schlesinger, as she scored a goal in the first half.

The Lady Corsairs were unable to score a goal of their own and lost their first home game of the season, 1-0 against Sierra College.

The loss brings SMC's record to 1-1, following their season opening victory over the Los Angeles Harbor College Seahawks, 2-1, on Sept. 3.

With pushing and shoving from both teams, including a yellow card being assessed to SMC's Yajaira Godinez, the match kept the crowd at the edge of their seats, despite being a low-scoring game.

“The game was filled with such excitement, it made it almost impossible to stop watching,” said SMC student Vanessa Rivera. “There was never a dull moment."

With stellar defense, led by Boe, SMC kept Sierra at bay for the rest of the game.
SMC came close to scoring, but never could quite capitalize.

New head coach Joe Pehanich encouraged the team from the sidelines as they kept pushing to try and tie the game. Staying positive, he kept the team's spirits high.

Despite the early season defeat, Pehanich had nothing but encouraging words and suggestions for his team as the game came to a close. The disappointment was evident, but Pehanich would not allow the team to hang their heads as they walked off the field.

“It was tiring, intense, but they [Sierra] played very well," said Godinez.

The Wolverines were ranked fourth in the nation last season in a National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll. Despite that, the Lady Corsairs held their ground and did not allow them an easy win.

“I’m very happy and felt very confident walking off the field; they showed a lot of character,” said Pehanich.

A former player, Pehanich coaches with encouragement, of which he showed plenty throughout the game. As he kicks of his inaugural season as head coach, his only hopes for the season is to, “do well in the conference.”

The Lady Corsairs will return to their home field next on Friday, Sept. 13 against the Ventura College Pirates at 5 p.m.