Highlanders Slam Eight Past Centenary

Saturday, September 25

Cedar City, UT

UC Riverside

Centenary

9/25/2004 4:06:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Four days after winning a program-record seventh game in a 1-0 thriller, the UCR women's soccer team exploded offensively in winning its eighth straight, scoring eight goals in an 8-0 victory over Centenary College in Cedar City, UT on Saturday. Seven different Highlanders got on the scoresheet with junior forward Lisa Jensen (San Dimas, CA/Bonita HS) netting two goals and sophomore forward Amber Plumlee (La Habra, CA/Sonora HS) providing one goal and three assists..

Fans might have been worried that the Highlanders would be sluggish after enduring a seven hour bus ride from Riverside to Cedar City, but UCR quickly silenced that talk. The Highlanders scored in the first minute of play, as junior midfielder Angela Reling (Costa Mesa, CA/Mater Dei HS) connected off a cross from senior defender Erika Bligh (Alta Loma, CA/Alta Loma HS) after just 58 seconds. It was Reling's first goal of the year and third of her career.

The Highlanders made it 2-0 at the 11:18 mark as Plumlee rebounded a shot for her third goal of the season. Freshman forward Kacie McElrath (Palm Desert, CA/Horizon HS) extended UCR's lead two and a half minutes later, as the Highlanders caught the Ladies (5-3-1) off-guard with a counterattack. Junior midfielder Renee Scachetti (Torrance, CA/Bishop Montgomery HS) provided the final pass for McElrath's team-leading sixth goal of the year.

Having seen her classmate move ahead of her in the scoring race, freshman forward Jenna Leonti (Corona, CA/Santiago HS) netted her fifth goal of the season to give UCR a 4-0 lead in the 22nd minute. Leonti pounced on a poor clearance from the Centenary defense to place the ball in the back of the net from 15 yards out.

Leading 4-0 at halftime, UCR switched goalies. Starter Tawny Poggio (Santa Ana, CA/Mater Dei HS) made way for senior Katie Blank (Chino Hills, CA/St. Lucy's Priory) after having been forced to make one save. Blank was hardly troubled in the second half, facing only two errant shots that were off-target.

With the win all but a formality, UCR netted a fifth at 50:08. Sophomore defender Shayna Hufford (Alta Loma, CA/Long Beach State) scored her first goal at UCR, sidestepping the Centenary goalie and firing into an empty net. Junior forward Vanessa Chanez (Placentia, CA/El Dorado HS) was credited with her team-leading fourth assist.

The scoreline remained 5-0 until the final eight minutes, when the Highlanders poured in three more goals, all off assists from Plumlee. Jensen collected her first of the contest when Plumlee found her unmarked in the box. Sophomore forward Linda Allen (Wildomar, CA/Lake Elsinore HS) scored the seventh goal in the 86th minute and Jensen concluded the scoring two minutes from time.

Riverside (8-0-0) recorded its second consecutive shutout and sixth of the season in extending its school-record winning streak to eight games. The eight goals were a season-high, surpassing the six scored against Nevada on August 29th. UCR completes its Utah road trip with a Monday game against Southern Utah at 2 p.m.