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Sept. 21, 1997

Cal Women's Soccer Falls to Fourth-Ranked Santa Clara, 2-1

BERKELEY, Calif. -- The California womens soccer team was defeated by fourth-ranked Santa Clara, 2-1, Sunday afternoon in Berkeley, Calif. The loss broke the Golden Bears two-game winning streak and dropped Cals overall record to 3-3-1 on the season.

Cal got the scoring started only three minutes into the match when Gretchen Vanderlip found Kim Brown for the games opening goal. Brown took the pass and maneuvered through the Bronco defense, unleashing a shot from the top of the box that beat Santa Clara goalkeeper Crystal Gordon for the 1-0 Cal lead. The goal, Browns third of the year, was the fastest scored by the Bears this season.

Despite being outshot in the first half by a nine-to-three margin, the Bears were able to hold off the Broncos behind spectacular goalkeeping by Jill Stephenson until the games 34th minute when Santa Claras Amanda Clemens won a free ball at the top of the penalty box and ripped the ball past the Cal goalkeeper for the equalizer.

The second half was a much different story as the Bears stepped up the offensive pressure. Each team would register four shots as the action flowed from end-to-end. The Broncos finally took the lead at the 78-minute mark when Stephenson strayed from her line to clear a deep pass. Santa Claras Rachel Weber stole the ball from the Cal goalkeeper and deposited the game-winner in the back of the net from a severe right angle to preserve the Bronco victory.

The win improved Santa Clara to 6-0-1 on the season.

Up next for Cal, the Bears travel to Texas for a pair of neutral site matches. Friday, Sept. 26, Cal will take on the defending national champions, North Carolina, in Houston. Then, on Sunday, Sept. 28, the Bears will meet Massachusetts in Dallas.

                1   2   F
Santa Clara     1   1   2
California      1   0   1
Goal            Assist(s)   Time        
Brown (Cal)     Vanderlip   3:00        
Clemens (SC)    None        34:00
Weber (SC)      None        78:00       
Goalkeepers         Shots/Saves/Goals Allowed       Records
Stephenson (Cal)    13-7-2                          Cal         3-3-1
Gordon (SC)          8-2-1                          Santa Clara 6-0-1