ALISO VIEJO, CA- The Soka Lions defeated the Westcliff University Warriors 3-1 on Saturday afternoon to earn their first win of the 2021 season.

Westcliff's Blair Gunderson put the Warriors on the board first in the 25^th minute of the match. The goal evolved after Thea Sofie Kanestrom connected her pass with Christine Thorvalsden, who pulled her cross back from the byline to find Gunderson in the box finishing her chance back post.

However, the Warriors' lead was short-lived as three minutes later, Soka was awarded a penalty kick. Alex Bershtein stepped up to the spot, placed her shot, and netted the equalizer and her first career goal for the Lions.

The two sides remained tied until the 81^st minute when Araceli Soto-Garcia served a driven cross second-six to Stephanie Mejia, who converted her chance back post to give the Lions the 2-1 lead.

A minute later, Soka's Renee Parado secured the Lions' victory after receiving a cross from Roxana Ortiz. Parado blasted her shot into the upper right corner of the goal, giving the Lions the 3-1 advantage, and ultimately, the win over the Warriors.

"This week, we came up with a plan on how to play against Westcliff," said Head Coach Wendy Espejel.  "I was very happy that the team stayed organized and committed to the plan the entire game. The first half was a bit slow on our end, but we started the second half with a fire to get the winning goal. Many players stepped up big in this game both positionally and in finding the back of the net."

Up next, the Lions will host the University of Saint Katherine on Friday, Sept. 17, 2021. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m.
 
 
Game Notes:  Soka outshot Westcliff 11-10. The Lions Ashley Bustamante made 3 saves on the day. A yellow card was shown to Soka's Kamry Aragon.