TUCSON, Ariz. – Haley Silverberg scored on a cracker of a shot with two minutes and 22 seconds left in the second half to give Arizona (10-4-1, 4-3 Pac-12) a 2-1 victory over the Oregon Ducks (4-11, 1-6 Pac-12) on Friday night at Mulcahy Stadium in Tucson, Ariz.
“We know that every Pac 12 team can beat you,” head coach Tony Amato said. “We can't stroll in and expect to win, we have to work. We knew the game would look a lot like it did tonight. Oregon is a good team and it is hard to win games at this level and we're fortunate to come out with a win tonight.”
With this win, Arizona secures double digit wins in a regular season for the second straight year. That is the first time in school history that an Arizona team has accomplished that feat. The Wildcats are now 9-1 when scoring first and 6-2-1 when scoring in the final 20 minutes.
Things started off quickly for Arizona as Gabi Stoian found Jaden DeGracie wide open on the right side of the goal. She took her time to trap the ball and fired a shot towards goal, but it went over the crossbar.
It seemed as though the Wildcats were going to be taking plenty of shots on the night as Stoian had an open shot in the seventh minute after she corralled the ball from a Charlotte Brascia shot that was blocked. Stoian put it on cage, but Oregon goalkeeper Halla Hinriksdottir was there to save it.
About 10 minutes later, Sheaffer Skadsen stopped a breakaway in the goal box as she executed a perfect slide tackle to take the ball away from the Oregon attacker. Had she missed, Oregon would've had a golden opportunity to go up one goal.
In the 23rd minute, Arizona goalkeeper Lainey Burdett made her first save of the night as she was able to parry away a screamer that was headed towards the back of the net. She finished the night with three saves.
In the 28th minute, Arizona almost had the goal of the year as Stoian stood over the ball for a free kick. She placed it beautifully into the goal box and DeGracie went for the volley, but she just missed it and Oregon regained possession.
Cali Crisler went for goal in the 30th minute by way of the header after a DeGracie flip throw in, but Hinriksdottir was there to save it, keeping the score at 0-0.
Burdett did her job in the cage as Kira Wagoner took a shot from about five feet away from the goal. Burdett extended her leg and was able to get the kick save to keep the ball out of the net.
Paige Crouch broke the seal for Arizona in the 44th minute on a set piece. Stoian delivered a perfect ball from about 50 yards out that went right to Hannah Stevens, who headed it to Crouch who was in front of the goal. Crouch easily placed the ball in the back of the net and the Wildcats took a 1-0 lead.
Since Stoian was credited with an assist, she now has eight assists on the year and 15 for her career. Eight assists in one season is tied for the second-most assists in a season with teammate DeGracie. Her 15 career assists is also tied for second with none other than DeGracie.
That lead wouldn't hold for very long as Oregon equalized with 15 seconds left in the first half. Kyra Fawcett made a run down the middle of the field and Abby Morrow found her. Fawcett jumped and volleyed it into the net, making the score 1-1 heading into halftime.
In the 51st minute, Stoian, Crouch and Hannah Wong formed a nice attack down the field which led to a cross from Crouch to Stoian. The ball looked to be perfect, but the Oregon defender did a good job of stepping in front of the ball and clearing it.
Five minutes later, Stoian showed off some fancy dribbling and was able to escape three Duck defenders. She passed it off to Crouch who took a shot at goal, but it was saved by the keeper.
In the 72nd minute, Oregon had another good chance to score as Burdett was forced to come off her line. The attacker got a foot on it, but Burdett was able to get a hand on it and the defense cleared the ball for good.
Silverberg's goal came in the 88th minute after Oregon's clearance didn't go far enough. She came up from her defensive position and took the shot from about 35 yards away and it found the back of the net.
“I was going to hang back and play more defense but then I saw a chance so I took it,” Silverberg said. “I told myself to keep it low and drive it, and luckily I did that.”
The Arizona defense held up and the Wildcats went on to win by a score of 2-1. The Wildcats are back in action on Sunday afternoon as they host the Oregon State Beavers at 1 p.m. MST.
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