No. 11 Cal Shuts Out No. 24 Santa Clara, 1-0

BERKELEY, Calif. – A goal by Grace Leer put the No. 11 California women's soccer team on the board early on and carried the Golden Bears all the way to a win as Cal shut out No. 24 Santa Clara, 1-0, Sunday afternoon on Goldman Field. The Bears improve to 7-1 with their fourth shutout of the season.

Leer used a textbook play to score her third goal of the season after teammate Celeste Boureille slipped the ball through the Santa Clara defense. Leer, dashing in from the right, sent the ball flying past Bronco keeper Andi Tostanoski and into the left corner of the net.

Though the Broncos put up a challenge the rest of the way, Leer's goal was all the Golden Bears needed for the victory. Cal finished with five shots on frame out of nine, while Santa Clara had just two shots on goal in eight tries.

Added to an August win over the Broncos, this is the first time since 2007 that Cal has played two matches against Santa Clara in the same season and won both.

Cal finishes a four-game homestand by hosting Pacific Friday at 1 p.m. The match will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks.

HEAD COACH NEIL MCGUIRE'S TAKE

This was not our best day in terms of our energy. Our effort, however, was very, very good. I think that we tried to play good soccer. Santa Clara was very good today and we struggled with many parts of their game. We're fortunate to come out with a win and we're excited about the game.

GOLDEN BEAR GOALS

6' – Grace Leer (assisted by Celeste Boureille) – Boureille passed to Leer on the right side of the field, and Leer shot into the left side of the net

Leer says: I was making a run and Celeste played a perfect slip ball through the defense and I got my foot on it, picked up my head and just finished into the corner like at practice.

NEWS & NOTES

Cal improves to 7-1 this season.
Grace Leer scored her third goal of the season.
Emily Boyd earned the win in goal, improving to 6-1 with her third solo shutout of the season.
Cal is 19-6-7 in the all-time series vs. Santa Clara. This is the first time since 2007 that the Golden Bears played two matches against Santa Clara in one season and won both of them.

NEXT UP

Cal's four-game homestand wraps up Friday, Sept. 19 as the Golden Bears play host to Pacific starting at 1 p.m. The game will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks.

ON THE BOX SCORE

SCORING SUMMARY:

1. 5:52 CAL LEER,GRACE (3) (BOUREILLE,CELESTE) - Pass to right side of field, shot into left side of goal

Shots: SCU 8, California 9

Saves: SCU 4 (Tostanoski, Andi 4), California 2 (BOYD,EMILY 2)