Will Titans be toppled or triumph?
The Bears continue to ride the wave of success after hitting two consecutive ties against San Francisco and Pepperdine. The Waves rank in No. 14 and have had an impressive season so far with an overall score of 4-0-2. Pepperdine was expected to be one of Cal’s toughest opponents along with UCLA and Stanford, but the Bears rained on Pepperdine’s parade after they tallied a second tie to their season after LSU handed them their first.
The blue and gold faced San Francisco on Sept. 1 in a match that culminated in 1-1. Cal’s goal came from Keely Roy, who happens to be a former Don and was assisted by Ayo Oke. Roy played for USF during her freshman season where she earned All-WCC Freshman team honors before she traded in her USF jersey for a Cal one. This goal marked Roy’s fourth goal this season, and fans hope to see more eye-opening performances from this stellar athlete as she continues to lead the team in scoring.
Roy has played a key role in most of Cal’s games, scoring at least one goal in three of Cal’s matches this season — including the exhibition match against the Chinese National Team.
Sophomore Courtney Boone recorded her first goal of the season during the match against Pepperdine on Sept. 4 in a game that ended with a tie of 1-1. Boone’s freshman season saw her earn the Pac-12 Defender of the Week honor Oct. 18. The defender pulled off an outstanding individual performance in the 24th minute when she scored. With a total of 21 attempted shots, the Waves felt the pressure as they brewed up a storm and hit numerous lightning shots and were finally able to find their equalizer when Senior Carlee Giamona scored her fourth goal of the season, tying with another player for the team’s highest scoring player.
The Waves crashed on goalkeeper Angelina Anderson, putting her skills to the test as she pulled off a spectacular individual display of talent as she saved the Bears seven times. While Pepperdine attempted many shots throughout the entire game, Cal only attempted four shots.
Kailee Gifford spent the 2021 season playing for the Waves in 10 matches before returning to her original team for the 2022 season. The defender was one of five players to start in every game she played during her season in a Waves uniform. Gifford’s college soccer career took off in 2017, and in 2019 and 2020, she formed part of the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll.
Cal will face Fullerton on Sept. 8 where fans hope to see the Bears maul the Titans. The Titans have an overall season score of 3-1-2 with a 2-1 win over UC Irvine, the only team the Bears have fallen to this season. The blue and gold hope to stop the Titan’s march as they hope to head into a three-game winning streak after Fullerton emerged victorious in its last two games in Utah.
The Bears must be vigilant of redshirt sophomore Collette Ledden and Emelia Owen, who scored the two goals that propelled Fullerton to its first victory against the Anteaters since 2017. The Titans must be ready for the dynamic duo of Karlie Lema and Roy, as Lema led the last season with the most goals and fans anticipate she will be adding numerous goals in the games to come.
The clash between the teams will be the first in recent memory, and the Bears hope to document their third win of the season against the Titans as they face them on Fullerton turf in the Titan Stadium.
Jovana Camberos covers women’s soccer. Contact her at jcamberos@dailycal.org.