BERKELEY – Though the Golden Bears outshot the Dons, 12-2, all it took was
one successful penalty kick for the No. 16/22 California women’s soccer
team to notch a 1-0 win over San Francisco on Friday afternoon. Senior
forward Alex Morgan converted for her nation-leading 10th goal of the
year.

“It was a really tough match,” Cal head coach Neil McGuire said. “San
Francisco came in well prepared, well structured and well organized. USF
head coach Mark Carr did a nice job in taking away some of our strengths.
Certainly, we’re really pleased with our team because they worked hard to
get the result.”

The brunt of the action came in the 50th and 51st minutes.

Freshman midfielder Kaitlyn Fitzpatrick took a shot on goal that ever so
narrowly missed the inside of the left post thanks to a block from
goalkeeper Heather Haney. The punch out gave Cal a corner kick, which was
taken by Morgan, who will return to the U.S. senior national team in two
weeks.

Morgan crossed it perfectly into the goal mouth, where a Don hit it with
her hand, awarding Cal the penalty kick. Morgan was assigned the kick, and
she kicked it to the left side of the goal with Haney diving to the right,
completely missing the ball and giving Cal that important 1-0 lead.

“Any time any of strikers have the ball from that distance, you’re hoping
they’ll score. We’re just happy that she was able to tuck it away.”

Cal looked to add another in the 85th minute when sophomore forward
Samantha Walker took a shot on goal that Haney had to save.

The game was the first in the past four that the Bears did not score more
four or more goals. Cal, however, did continue its streak of outshooting
its opponents, today by a double-digit margin for the fifth consecutive
match, at 12-2. Cal has not outscored its past three opponents by a grand
different of 19-2, including an 8-1 shellacking of Hawaii and last
Sunday's 6-0 shutout over Long Beach State. The Bears are now 11-3-2
overall with the Dons.

“I don’t think this is the best performance ever had this season,” Morgan
said. “But we got a goal and won. Now we just need to move onto Sunday’s
game against Pacific.”

Cal brings a three-game winning streak against Pacific into this weekend
with the Bears boasting the all-time record with UOP at 5-1-0. The Bears
beat the Tigers, 3-0, in exhibition play to start the 2009 season, but
have not met Pacific in an official capacity since 2005, which also saw a
3-0 Cal win on Sept. 14, 2005.

Earlier this season, Pacific defeated Hawaii, 1-0, in the Tigers' first
game of the season - an opponent that Cal defeated, 8-1. Two weeks after
the Bears tied in overtime, 0-0, with Santa Clara, Pacific lost to
then-No. 9 SCU, 2-1, on Sept. 10.

The game against Pacific kicks off 1 p.m. at Edwards Stadium and is free
to attend.