Vaqueros blank Taft 2-0, extend home win streak to 16

SBCC scored a couple of early goals on Friday and limited Taft to three shots in a 2-0 women's soccer shutout at La Playa Stadium.

Elin Hedstroem, a freshman defender from Sweden, got her first college goal in the eighth minute when she chested in a corner kick from Ashlee Schouten.

"Scout took the corner and it went by the goalie and straight into my chest," said Hedstroem. "It feels really good to score my first goal.

"It felt good to keep them without a goal. We tried to connect better today. When we had the ball on defense, we connected with the midfield and got back. It's taken some time to trust each other and trust ourselves after all the injuries we've had."

At the 24:10 mark, Mila Ladek made a short pass to Isabella Viana at the top of the box. Viana turned quickly and fired one into the upper right corner for her team-leading eighth goal and a 2-0 lead.

The Vaqueros, ranked 12th in the state in power points, improved to 4-2-1. They've won 16 straight at home and are 23-1 in their last 24 at La Playa Stadium. Taft managed just one first-half shot and it came in the 33rd minute.

Santa Barbara outshot the visitors 10-3 with six shots on-goal. They had nine corner kicks and Taft had none.

"We dominated play in the first half and we looked dangerous on the corners and set pieces," said coach John Sisterson. "In the second half, they competed and sort of bullied us a little and knocked us off our game. We still had a couple of chances but it wasn't the best soccer.

"Our teams take pride in winning here at home. If you're going to be successful, you've got to make your homestead your fortress. We were hurt by injuries early in the year but the girls are starting to turn the corner and gain their confidence."

The Vaqueros will play their final non-conference game on Tuesday at Canyons with kickoff at 2:30 p.m.