Pacific dropped its regular season opener 2-0 Friday night to Oregon Tech.
But the improvement from exhibition play was clear to head coach
Chelsea Davis.
"It's our best game that we've played yet," Davis said. "I think that overall in terms of game execution and intensity, we definitely leveled up. Some players have put in some really big minutes and I thought that overall collectively we did play well. It was really nice to see them play their best game and grow within the last couple games that we've played."
Tied 0-0 at halftime, Miranda Valle put the ball in the back of the net in the 62nd minute to give Oregon Tech a 1-0 lead.
Shalynai Naputi then added a late goal in the 89th minute to put the Owls on top 2-0.
"We need to clean up our defensive mentality in the box and put some balls away," Davis said. "We got some really good early chances in the beginning of the game and didn't finish them off."
The Boxers finished the match with five shots on goal from five different players –
Mirella Garcia,
Brooklyn Yano,
Ella Mee,
Julia Fechter and
Olivia Azzollini.
"Oregon Tech came out flying, very physical," Davis said. "I think we matched it for the most part. That is something also I think we need to raise the level with terms of intensity and physicality of the game."
Including two exhibition matches, Pacific is still looking for its first goal of the year.
"We have so many freshmen, so we've worked on our defensive third, our middle third and what that looks like, and we haven't worked so much in the attacking third," Davis said. "So that's something we need to continue to build on and its hardest part of the game. We'll get there."
Next up, the Boxers travel to Nampa, Idaho to play NW Nazarene on Sept. 9 at 1 p.m.
"I'm happy with where we're at," Davis said. "It's a young group and I'm waiting for some of our other players to step up."
