Arizona and Oregon State soccer teams both entered Sunday’s match with something important on the line. For the Wildcats, the goal was to get their first Pac-12 win. For the Beavers, it was to continue a surprise season and end an eight-game losing streak against Arizona.
Both teams are under new leadership with Arizona’s Becca Moros and Oregon State’s Lauren Sinacola getting their jobs in July. The initial change had its challenges for both teams, especially when it came to personnel.
Both coaches lost one of the team’s top goal-scorers to a Pac-12 rival. For Moros, it was Jada Talley to USC. Sinacola arrived to find midfielder Sydney Studer had already departed for Washington State.
That’s where the similarities stop this year as the Beavers made clear with a 2-0 victory at Paul Lorenz Field on Sunday. It was the first time Arizona had lost to OSU since 2012. That day, it was a 5-1 drubbing by the Beavs. This year, it was a more respectable but still disheartening game that dropped Arizona to 0-5 in Pac-12 play and 3-9 overall.
Oregon State started the weekend at No. 14 in RPI and receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll. The Beavers’ record stood at 10-2 overall and 2-2 in Pac-12 play. They had a huge win over No. 7 Stanford already to their credit. And they were a perfect 5-0 at home.
OSU kept rolling on Sunday with an early goal by Sophie Conrad in the 12th minute. Conrad was assisted by Laura Galceran. It was the third goal of the season for Conrad, who is one of 13 Beavers who has put the ball in the back of the net at least once this year. The assist was Galceran’s third, which ties her for second on the team.
The Wildcats went into the half behind by just one goal. Keeping it there was vital if they hoped to come back, but they weren’t able to prevent the insurance goal. Just out of the half, Amber Jackson scored in the 51st minute on the Brianna McReynolds assist.
Jackson’s fifth goal of the season puts her second on her team. For McReynolds, it was her second assist in the 2021 season.
Arizona had one shot in the first half compared to seven for Oregon State. The Wildcats tried to rally in the second half with seven shots of their own. The Beavers put together four shots over the final 45 minutes.
Of the Beavers’ 11 shots, only four were on goal, but they were able to put half of those past Arizona goalkeeper Hope Hisey. Meanwhile, the Wildcats managed three shots on goal. Those chances were by Olivia Briede, Nicole Dallin, and Megan Chelf.
The Wildcats played without redshirt senior defender Sabrina Enciso who was injured during Thursday’s match against Oregon. Last week against UCLA, Moros was encouraged by the recent return of several injured players. The injury to Enciso was yet another setback for the squad.