Soccer

It was one of those games that will sit in their minds until they step on the field next week.
The Oregon soccer team took No. 16 USC into overtime after playing hard for 90 minutes. But another win eluded the Ducks as they fell to the Trojans, 1-0.
It was a nightmare the Ducks didn’t want to deal with as they walked away from McAlister Field on Sunday afternoon. The Ducks move to 2-13-2 overall and 1-6-1 in Pacific-10 Conference play.
USC (10-5-3, 5-2) entered its seventh overtime game of the season and it didn’t faze the Trojans, as they are 4-0-3 in extra periods.
Senior Ali Fennell found her moment to shine for the Trojans as she recorded her team-leading ninth goal of the season on USC’s senior day.
It was Fennell’s only shot of the day and came at the right time, as it bounced off several players in a pinball-like action to bring the crowd of 318 to its feet.
The Trojans had a solid team effort as forwards Jackie Fodor and Jessica Edwards took three and two shots, respectively.
It was an even matchup for the Ducks and Trojans, as USC edged Oregon in shots 12-8. The two were equal in corner kicks with four and had 11 fouls apiece.
In goal, senior Sarah Peters earned five saves for the Ducks and freshman Katy Boynton wrapped up three for the Trojans.
Oregon’s offense represented itself well in firing eight shots for goals. Freshman midfielders Cristan Higa and Carlie Ashcraft led the way, each taking two shots for the Ducks.
Midfielders Valerie Mayer, Kelly Baird and Elise Minvielle, along with defender Dara Wone, all took one shot for Oregon.
Oregon faced another Los Angeles team prior to USC, but couldn’t find the goal Friday evening, either.
The Ducks managed to hold the No. 6 Bruins scoreless through 45 minutes, but couldn’t do it for 90 minutes as Oregon fell 2-0 to the Bruins.
“We played hard and overall we had a pretty good effort for the first half,” Oregon head coach Bill Steffen said. “But what hurt us eventually was that we lost too many individual battles. They scored initially in the second half on a play that was a little controversial. Overall, they outshot us, but many of their chances were past 20 yards.”
UCLA dominated the shooting margin 23-2 over Oregon, as the Bruins went on to score their fourth-consecutive shutout. UCLA moves to 13-3 and 5-1 in the Pac-10 and have won five of their last six.
Forward Katie Rivera scored just three minutes into the second half for the Bruins and assisted forward Lindsay Greco on UCLA’s second goal just 12 minutes later.
For Oregon, Higa was the Ducks’ only offensive presence, as she took Oregon’s two shots in the first half. Peters took care of business in goal, racking up 10 saves to match her season high.
The Ducks return home to Papé Field for their final regular season game against arch rival Oregon State on Friday.