KU Downs St. Mary's, 4-2
BERKELEY, Calif. – Senior Holly Gault had a goal and an assist in a ten-minute span of the second half to power the University of Kansas past St. Mary’s 4-2 at the 12th annual Cal Invitational Sunday at Edwards Stadium.
The win improves the Jayhawks to 2-1 overall while St. Mary’s drops to 1-3.
Tied at halftime, KU put the match away early in the second half with three goals in a 10-minute span.
Freshman Monica Dolinsky gave the Jayhawks a 2-1 lead in the 54th minute with her second goal of the season on a play set up by Gault. The senior forward sent a pass into the box that Dolinsky blasted past the keeper to the near side of the goal at 53:42.
Seven minutes later, senior Michelle Rasmussen put home the game-winner. The 5-foot-4 midfielder collected a loose ball at the top of the box following a KU corner kick and drove a shot past the keeper from 25 yards out for her first goal of the season.
Gault put the finishing touches on the scoring for Kansas. The preseason All-Big 12 selection intercepted a clearing attempt by the Gaels defense following another corner kick and tapped in her first goal of the season at the 63:32 mark.
St. Mary’s answered two minutes later, but could not pull any closer as the Jayhawks outshot the Gaels 7-4 in second half.
Senior Lacey Novak gave KU a short-lived lead in the first half. The senior carried a ball past the defense and sent a shot into the net from 20 yards out 1:39 into the match. However, St. Mary’s answered in the eighth minute as McKenna Belzer tied the score with her first goal of the season.
Sophomore goalkeeper Julie Hanley saved the Jayhawks midway through the first half. Jessica Menzhuber found a way through the KU defense and was one-on-one with Hanley. The 5-foot-9 keeper made a sliding save to keep the score tied.
Hanley finished the match with a pair of saves. St. Mary’s held a slight edge in shots (12-10) and corner kicks (5-4).
The Jayhawks will travel to Birmingham, Ala., for another tournament next weekend. KU will play the University of Alabama on Friday at 5 p.m.
