Phoenix, AZ:
The Lady Oaks brief two game road swing in Arizona concludes with a win and a loss, after Menlo dropped their opener on Friday to Embry-Riddle (2-3-1), before bouncing back with a 3-0 win over Arizona Christian (1-2-1) on Saturday. The split moves the Oaks record to 4-2, a mere victory away from duplicating their 2011 win total.
Menlo's clash with Riddle featured a barrage of first half fireworks. The two teams combined for four first half scores, with the Lady Oaks coming out of the first 45 minutes down 3-1…the eventual final.
Menlo had their hands full early, thanks to a rapid fire Eagles goal just 1:57 into the match. Senior forward Kelsey Anderson found the back of the net to give Riddle the quick 1-0 advantage. Anderson would play a factor later in the first stanza, helping produce Riddle's second goal of the tilt by setting up freshman Kalyn Goodenough in the 23rd minute for a 2-0 lead.
The Oaks would respond behind junior Natalie Ingram's fifth goal of the season coming in the 24th minute, but Goodenough was at it again with a penalty shot score in the 31st minute to give Riddle their 3-1 advantage.
Menlo's junior goalkeeper Whitney Galindo made three saves in the defeat, while the Eagles' Brenna Quinn halted four of five that came her way. Embry-Riddle outshot the Oaks 15-9, including 6-5 in the shots on goal department.
The Lady Oaks would go on to show their resiliency just 24 hours later, racking up a 3-0 victory over the Firestorm of Arizona Christian. A healthy combination of offense and defense was the name of the game, with Menlo stifling any thoughts of a Firestorm goal. The Oaks back line of the defense, led by sophomore Kayla Cisneroz, kept ACU to a measly six total shots throughout the course of 90 minutes.
In terms of offense, the aforementioned Natalie Ingram and Erika Savela continued their impressive early season play. Ingram found the back of the net for Menlo's second goal in the 25th minute, after Amanda Martinez opened the scoring with a goal in the 16th minute. Ingram now has six goals in six games, while Martinez has scorched in two herself.
As far as Savela is concerned, the Stockholm, Sweeden native helped the Oaks expand on their 2-0 intermission lead thanks to a score in the 60th minute of play. Savela had previously assisted on both the Martinez and Ingram goals to give her a four point evening. Junior Erica Hunting set up the Savela score with a beautiful through ball to help push the Oaks margin to 3-0.
The defense and goalkeeper Whitney Galindo took it from there, as Galindo made five saves for her third shutout of the year. Menlo also proved to be relentless in their attack with 14 total shots, nine of which were on point.
Next on tap for the Lady Oaks is the second annual Menlo Invitational, set to begin next Friday, September 14th as the Oaks will clash with Marymount College at Wunderlich Field. Kickoff is slated for 3:00pm. Two days later, Menlo will go up against a tough Southern Oregon squad on Sunday at 2:30pm.
