This fall the beat was steady. What you heard was the Santa Clara women’s soccer team systematically climbing up the rankings from 12th to seventh to fourth thanks to victory upon victory.
There was the tie against the No. 1–ranked Stanford. Then the win against the No. 2–ranked University of North Carolina. And the beat goes on.
As of press time, the Bronco scorecard shows only a pair of losses. Maddy Gonzalez ’20 leads the team in goals with seven in 19 games. Kelcie Hedge ’19 scored two of her seven goals for the team in a single game against the University of San Francisco in the conference opener.
It isn’t just the veterans nailing the net. First-year student Kaile Halvorsen ’22 scored her first college goal—and the only goal in the 1–0 win—against No. 2 UNC. Now that’s how you open a season.
How do you close it when it comes to regular-season play? With a 7–0 victory over University of the Pacific and an invitation to the NCAA Tournament.