Women's Soccer Wins, Wins and Wins Again
With last week bringing a 3-0 win over Citrus College (6-9-2) and a 1-1 tie at Bakersfield College (9-4-3), the Santa Monica College Lady Corsairs soccer team (9-1-5) is six games away from the end of the regular season. Up to this point they have posted nine wins and five ties with only one loss. The remainder of their schedule is composed of teams the Lady Corsairs have outscored 25-3.
Back home from a three game road trip, the Lady Corsairs defense allowed only one goal to Bakersfield this past Friday, making it the only goal scored on the Lady Corsair defense in five games and over two weeks of play.
At Citrus College, the Lady Corsairs posted a 3-0 victory, with three different defenders scoring goals, demonstrating how the potent Lady Corsairs defense has been able to translate tough defense into points. Sarah McElroy also posted the sixth shutout of this season with six saves during the match.
An away game against Bakersfield College at Bakersfield marked the rematch with the team responsible for the Lady Corsairs' sole loss this season, a 1-0 loss at SMC in the last game of September. This past week's game saw the Lady Corsairs being a bit more involved offensively, with the game ending in a 1-1 tie with midfielder Daniella Da Costa as Santa Monica's lone scorer.
With six games until the end of their regular season, the Lady Corsairs will have two games at home, followed by a two game road stint at College of the Canyons (3-14-0) and at L.A. Valley College (3-11-2), only to return home for their final two games with another game against their remaining divisional opponents Citrus College and L.A. Mission College (5-10-1).
If they win one more game, the Lady Corsairs will have achieved their best record in three years and their first double-digit win season since the 2005 season, where the Lady Corsairs were eliminated in the first round of the regional playoffs despite a 16-4-0 regular season.
A young roster with only a fourth of its players returning, most of the team was not present during last year's six-win season, but according to Coach Aaron Benditson, for those who were present last year, it has only made them stronger as players. "We know that we're not going to ever allow that to happen ever again," said Benditson in reference to last year.
In a stark contrast to last year, with the preseason goal of a Western State Conference Title getting closer and closer as the fall playoffs approach, this year's Lady Corsair team looks to be driving strong towards the postseason, recording a 5-0-2 record since the start of October, with two ties against divisional leaders Bakersfield College and L.A. Pierce College (13-2-3).
The Lady Corsairs will be taking on divisional powerhouse L.A. Pierce College this coming Friday at SMC at 3 p.m., followed by their second evening game of the year at College of the Canyons the following Tuesday at 7 p.m.