When you talk to head coach Nat Gonzalez about the UCR women’s soccer team, there’s a distinct feeling that’s oozing through all of his words. At first, the subtlety of his inflections makes it somewhat difficult to capture, but as you continue to listen, you hear it. A hint of optimism mixed with pride seems to fit itself into his words when he talks about his team. Sometimes, his excitement is palpable as he meticulously details the attributes of his team and looks toward improvement in the future.
After the first 10-win season for the program since 2006, a 2-2-3 record is not the kind of start that Coach Gonzalez wanted. “It’s disappointing,” he said of his team’s results this year. “When I see what this team can be and it’s potential, to start out .500 like this is tough. But when I step back and see the talent on this team and what we can do, I feel better about it.”
And this team has already shown a great deal of potential. Despite struggling offensively to start the season, six different Highlanders have already found the back of the net this season. Coach Gonzalez believes that “offense is the hardest thing to bring together.” We have missed out on a lot of opportunities, those three ties that we have feel like losses to us. We won 3-0 against Akron and that was a good offensive showing.” This continues the trend of offensive diversity that the Highlanders have been looking to implement into their game over the past several years; the 2014 team set the program record with 16 different Highlanders scoring over the season, followed by 12 in 2015. “It’s what we do,” asserts Gonzalez, “We press teams and the ball will end up on another foot. What’s most exciting is that brand new girls are tallying goals for us.” Redshirt freshman Jessica Samano, sophomore transfer Madeleine Faust, sophomore Quinley Quezada and sophomore Nerisse Bugho each scored their first goal as a Highlander in these first seven games.
One possible point of concern is the early silence of redshirt senior midfielder Blanca Barrio. Barrio had an exemplary season in 2015, finishing the year second in the Big West Conference in assists and fifth in points on her way to a Big West Conference All First-Team selection. With an experienced talent like that, Coach Gonzalez believes it is only a matter of time before she gets going. “Blanca has only scored one, and I don’t know if she even has an assist yet, but I am not too worried about who is scoring as long as we as a team are producing. We just have to wait for Blanca to get in her groove again.” There was a sense of assurance in that final line, demonstrating the trust that Gonzalez has in his team and its star player.
A big loss to the program that may have also contributed to the slow start was the graduation of goalkeeper Elizabeth Silas, whose 0.94 average goals allowed last season was only the third goalkeeper in UCR history to record a sub-1.00 average in a season. Thus, there was a stiff competition to fill her shoes, with both redshirt junior Alana Guzman and freshman Annie Bailey making strong cases for themselves during preseason. While Guzman eventually was given the starting spot, she went down with an injury on September 11 at Akron, allowing for Bailey to sub in and record a shutout — becoming the first freshman to do so in her debut since Sara Slaughter in 2012.
Despite the slow start, the Highlanders are aiming beyond the 10-win threshold, and Gonzalez believes that one of the most important factors to taking this next step is to seize opportunities against stronger competition.
“Those games against the premier teams are important,” Coach Gonzalez emphasized. The Michigan game, I feel, was much closer than the score shows. It was 0-0 in the 65th minute, and it was only when they scored their first goal that we had to open up. In order for our team to take the next step we have to beat teams like that. We showed that we aren’t scared anymore.”
Another important aspect that was emphasized was the importance of conference play. “To take the next step we have to beat Cal State Long Beach and Cal State Fullerton on a regular basis,” asserts Coach Gonzalez, “It’s not just about getting 10 wins, but about getting the right wins as well.” The Highlanders have been competitive in conference in recent history, placing third and advancing to the Big West Championship game in 2013, where they lost to Cal State Fullerton in penalty kicks. They’ve managed to remain in the top half of conference since and perhaps this is the year they get the right wins.
