In a game that prioritizes defense as much as soccer, having a goalkeeper that can hold their ground is arguably the first big step to a successful team. As the Oregon women’s soccer team rebounds from some disappointing seasons in recent years, protecting the goal has been a strong suit for the program since they acquired Caeley Goldstein from the transfer portal ahead of this season.

The San Francisco Bay Area native graduated high school in 2020, where she was named First Team All-League her senior year and an honorable mention as a sophomore. She was also selected for an Olympic Development Program for youth soccer players.

Goldstein is in her sixth season of collegiate soccer, with Oregon being her third school. She began her college career at Washington, where she saw limited playing time due to a medical absence. She transferred to the University of California, Davis in 2022, where she was coached by current Oregon head coach Tracy Joyner.

Goldstein made 57 starts at University of California Davis and allowed an average of 1.06 goals per game. She recorded a total of 249 saves before arriving in Eugene. Her career high is recording 12 saves while allowing zero goals. The teams that Goldstein was on combined for a 33-18-8 record with 20 shut- outs while she was on the field.

More than anything, Goldstein values that soccer is a team sport and her success is driven by how her teammates set up on defense, making her job easier. It is the way the defenders in front of her are positioned that has allowed her to have the success she has had in defending the goal.

“Just trusting each other,” Goldstein said after Oregon’s 0-0 tie against Northwestern. “I like to be part of the game too, so just staying on our feet and just making it an easy angle for me to make a save.”

As a tenured member of the game, Goldstein believes it is up to her and her veteran teammates to build confidence and talent in the younger players to make the team better.

“Building confidence, especially because Selah (Simms) is new, so just building confidence within her,” Goldstein said. “She’s got a lot of good people around her. Me and Jazzy (Young) are sixth years, and on the other side, Jayde (Holley) is a fifth year. We have a ton of experience back there and it’s really just making the right decisions, staying on our feet and trusting ourselves and each other.”

Since the new coach and player duo touched down in the Willamette Valley, the overall record might not be where the Ducks want it as they sit at (2-7-2), but Goldstein has held her ground and given Oregon a chance. She has allowed just 12 goals and made 40 saves.

Now that the Ducks are facing Big Ten opponents, they are adjusting to a different style of play that involves the players being positioned higher up and the goalkeeper leaving the box more often.

“Since we went into a three back,” Goldstein said. “I feel like I have to be part of the back line now, so I’m learning to use my feet a lot more. I knew they were gonna slip balls in behind. A lot of the Big Ten schools do that, or they realize that we’re really high up, so I also have to be attached to the team and play high.”

As Oregon enters the final weeks of its season, the new additions to the team still have not translated to better results. Regardless of what happens on the far end of the field, the Ducks can hold confidence that their opponents will face a difficult obstacle when tasked with attacking a goal guarded by Caeley Goldstein.