The UC Santa Cruz women’s soccer team scored twice in the first half and held on to stun No. 2 nationally ranked Christopher Newport 2-0 to claim its first Coast-To-Coast Conference Tournament championship at Lower East Field in Santa Cruz on Sunday.
With its win, the Banana Slugs advance to NCAA Division III Tournament with an automatic berth, and snapped the Captains’ 84-match unbeaten streak, which dated back to Nov. 17, 2019.
“I’m so excited for this team,” Banana Slugs coach Lilia Dosalmas said. “This group has worked so hard. It’s an honor and a testament to all the work they’ve been doing.”
CNU dropped to No. 4 with their first loss, and No. 23 UCSC climbed into the top-25 for this first time this season.
The future is bright for youth-laden UCSC, which has just three seniors on its roster.
“To watch the players grow from the start to the finish is really exciting, and one of my favorite things about coaching,” said Dosalmas, who is in her third year at the helm.
Kristi Truong, a junior defender out of Granite Bay High, scored her second goal of the season in the 16th minute. Sydney Boyd, a junior midfielder out of Tamalpais High in Mill Valley, and Susanaitzel Juarez-Mancera, a sophomore midfielder out of Salinas High, were credited with assists.
Camille Anneet, a junior forward out of Malibu High, scored her sixth goal of the season in the 29th minute.
CNU outshot UCSC 16-8, but Banana Slugs goalie Ainsley Gove, named the C2C Rookie of the Year earlier in the week, was up to task. An alumna of Oak Park High in Newbury Park, Gove made 10 saves over 90 minutes.
“She is tenacious,” Dosalmas said. “She was our number five goalkeeper at the start. She was very persistent. During the recruiting process, I told her we weren’t looking for another goalkeeper. She said, ‘I’ll do whatever it takes to be here.’ We had some injuries and things, and she came on and was a superstar.
“She’s fearless and athletic, quick, sharp and decisive. She’s come up with some big-time saves for us.”
Captains goalie Amy Sidaway made two saves for the Captains (15-1-2).
UCSC will learn its first-round opponent in the Division III Tournament during Monday’s selection show at 11 a.m. on NCAA.com.
First-round action begins Nov. 16 and second-round action takes place Nov. 17. Games from both round will be streamed on NCAA.com.
Cal Lutheran (12-3-4) of Thousand Oaks, which lost 3-1 to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (13-3-3) in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals on Wednesday, is the defending national champion.
The 2024 D-III Final Four takes place at Peter Johann Memorial Field in Las Vegas on Dec. 6-8.
Surfing
ISA World Para Surf Championship: Santa Cruz’s Erin Koffel, a Minnesota transplant who took up surfing in 2022, earned the copper medal in the women’s kneel division at the ISA World Para Surf Championship, which ran Nov. 3 through Saturday in Huntington Beach.
In her first global competition, Koffel produced a two-wave total score of 7.06. She finished behind Spain’s Audrey Pascual (13.16), Brazil’s Vera Quaresma (8.73), and Australia’s Emma Dieters (7.57).
Running
Monterey Bay Half Marathon: Santa Cruz’s Jay Thompson took 24th out of 7,060 runners in the Monterey Bay Half Marathon on Sunday. Thompson finished in 1:12:15.
Four other Santa Cruz County runners produced top-100 finishes. Aptos’ Colin Daw (1:20:35) took 62nd, Santa Cruz’s Michael Charbonneau (1:22:18) took 75th, Santa Cruz’s Alex Kasman (1:23:39) took 93rd, and Santa Cruz’s Gina Jacobs (1:24:03) took 97th.
Turlock’s Ero Doce (1:03:56) won the men’s title, and Moss Beach’s Liza Reichert (1:17:15) won the women’s title.
Women’s basketball
At Pomona-Pitzer 57, UCSC 50: Emilie Ngo scored 19 points in the Banana Slugs’ loss in Claremont on Sunday.
Talysha Wilkerson had 11points, five rebounds and three steals for UCSC, and Claire Galbo had 10 points, four rebounds, three assists, and two blocks.
Jenna Gorton had five points, a team-high 18 rebounds, and three blocks for the Banana Slugs, who trailed 29-25 at the half.
UCSC (0-2) plays at La Verne (0-0) on Thursday at 11 a.m.
Girls tennis
CCS singles, doubles brackets released: Brackets were released for the Central Coast Section singles and doubles tournaments, which will be held at Bay Club Courtside next week.
The seeding process wasn’t kind to the locals
Aptos freshman Kiana Safari, the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League individual champion, faces No. 2 seed Pavith Khara of Harker in the first round of the singles tournament on Nov. 18 at noon.
Scotts Valley seniors Sofia Niklaus and Erin Szymanski, the SCCAL doubles champions, face No. 1 Bella Jacutin-Mariona and Cory Medeiros of Los Altos in the first round of the doubles tournament on Nov. 19 at noon.
Reporting Scores
Coaches are encouraged to report scores and highlights to sports@santacruzsentinel.com following games. Please include your name and contact number in the email.