ATHERTON, Calif. - The University of California, Merced women's soccer team dropped a 2-1 match at Menlo College on Saturday afternoon.
Merced native Haylee Heffner scored the lone goal for the Bobcats (1-1) in the 82nd minute. Heffner, who has scored two goals in as many games, is the first freshman to score in back-to-back games to open up the season since Ashley Bennett did so in 2014.
Both of Heffner's goals this year have come in the final ten minutes of action off a cross from Jocelyne Garcia.
Garcia's assist moves her into a tie with D Covarrubias for seventh all-time with 12 career assists. Garcia also pulled even with Covarrubias for eighth all-time with 44 career points.
Menlo scored its goals in the 54th and 70th minute. The first score of the game came via a penalty kick as the Oaks were fouled inside the box. Kori-Ann Koverman elected to toe the penalty stripe and found success.
Menlo's game-winning goal in the 70th minute was scored off the foot of Ella Sonnelid from approximately 30 yards out. The goal was unassisted.
Overall, Menlo outshot the Bobcats 16-9 and managed to earn six corner kicks compared to the Bobcats one. Six of the nine Bobcat shots were on target and five different players accounted for them.
Isabella Spiva recorded the Bobcats first shot in the tenth minute off a Covarrubias cross but Oaks keeper Michelle Gonzalez made her first of five saves on the afternoon.
Center back Daisy Perez helped start a potential scoring opportunity late in the first half, taking the ball away from an Oak at the center line and pushing it up the field to Garcia. Jenn Salinger took a Garcia pass in stride and rocketed a shot from 20 yards out that Gonzalez had to make a diving save on.
While the Bobcats threatened in the first half to take the lead, Menlo failed to get a shot on goal and the Bobcats defended three corner kicks successfully. Menlo was also whistled for six fouls in the first half.
However, possession switched in the second half and it was Menlo who threatened right out of intermission with three more corner kicks in the first five minutes. UC Merced goalkeeper Veronica Vazquez stood strong in the net, stopping the first shot. Her back line was credited with a save on each of the next two shots Menlo got off as a direct result of a corner.
The penalty kick came shortly after that for the first score of the game.
Between the penalty kick and the game-winning goal in the 70th minute, Menlo got off five shots compared to the Bobcats one. Vazquez made a pair of saves in that span and finished with four overall on the day.
After Heffner scored the Bobcats goal to cut the deficit in half, Stephanie Medina fired a shot off the crossbar in the closing minutes and Garcia took a shot that was saved.
Scylla Alavizos made her UC Merced debut and earned the start in the setback.
The Bobcats road match was their first and last road match of the nonconference slate and they now return to Bobcat Field for three straight contests.
First up is UC Santa Cruz on Wednesday, September 8 at 6:00pm.
