BERKELEY – The Cal women's soccer team fought to its third consecutive conference win on Saturday, topping Washington State, 2-0, on a bright and clear afternoon at Goldman Field. The Golden Bears (11-2-1, 4-1-1 Pac-12) got on the board in the opening minutes behind a goal from Miranda Nild, and doubled their advantage late in the second half as Kayla Fong tallied her first career goal. Cal's defense stood tall all afternoon, shutting out the Cougars (7-5-2, 2-4-0 Pac-12) for the Bears' third consecutive clean sheet.

Cal's three-game shutout streak is tied for the team's longest of the year and is the Golden Bears' longest shutout streak in conference play since 2015. Today marked the sixth shutout in the last eight games for the Golden Bears and their eighth overall this season. Senior goalkeeper Emily Boyd now has 34 career shutouts, moving into a tie with former Stanford greats Nicole Barnhart and Elise Edwards for fourth in Pac-12 women's soccer history.

Coming off a 2-0 win their last time out against Utah, the Golden Bears jumped right back into action on Saturday afternoon, scoring on the first shot of the game. Freshman midfielder Luca Deza flicked on a ball that found Nild at the top of the 18. The junior from Castro Valley, California, took a few touches to beat the Cougar defense and took a shot that went off the near post and into the back of the net. It Nild's fifth goal of the year and marked the earliest score by any Cal player this season. Nild is currently second on the team in scoring with five goals in 2017, including a team-high three game winners.

Cal continued creating offensive looks in the first half, but did well to hold off a Washington State attack that outshot the Bears, 5-4, in the opening 45 minutes and held a 3-0 advantage on corner kicks. Boyd was called into action in the 34^th minute, tipping away a shot by the Cougars that was headed towards the back post. The reigning Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week, Boyd ended the game with three saves while Washington State's Ella Dederick made three stops in the loss.

Washington State nearly leveled the score heading into the half, as a shot by forward Makamae Gomera-Stevens careened off the post.

The second half saw the Golden Bears once again start with offensive intensity, including several combinations between rookie midfielders Deza and Daisy Cleverley that resulted in shots that were just off target or saved by Dederick. Cal nearly added to its advantage in the 69^th minute, when Kailee Gifford's shot was deflected into the path of Fong, whose shot was cleared off the goal line by the Cougars defense.

However, Cal's persistence paid off and the Golden Bears doubled their lead in the 72^nd minute with Fong's first career goal off an assist from sophomore Maggie Bell. Bell played a ball in from the left wing that found Fong with time to turn in the middle of the box. Fong pulled the goalkeeper off her line and buried the ball into the back of the net. Fong, who assisted the game-winning goal in Cal's 1-0 win at Colorado on October 5, becomes the 11^th different player to score for the Golden Bears this season. Bell tallied her third assist of the season, moving into a tie for first on the team.

Washington State threw more numbers into the attack in the waning minutes, but Boyd and Cal's backline of Indigo Gibson, Emily Smith, and Heather Walleigh remained disciplined and well-organized, holding the Cougars to just three shots on target all afternoon.

With the win, Cal improves to 6-1-1 at home this season and keeps pace with the Pac-12 leaders. The Golden Bears are currently fourth in the conference standings with 13 points, just three points out of second place.

The Bears will be back in action next weekend, playing their final home games of the 2017 regular season. On Thursday, October 19, the Bears will square off against Oregon State at 3 p.m. PT before taking on Oregon at 11 a.m. PT on Sunday. The match against the Ducks will be Senior Day for Cal's senior class.

For more information and to keep up-too-date on the Golden Bears throughout the year, follow the team on Twitter (@CalWSoc), Instagram (@CalWSoc), and Facebook (Facebook.com/CalWSoc).