KANEOHE, Hawaii --- At halftime, California
Baptist University Head Coach Kristen St. Clair finished addressing her team,
sat down on the bench, then had one final word for them.
She made sure they knew she wanted nothing for her
birthday but a win.
Less than 25 seconds later, Kimberly Allard found the back of the net, and the Lancers were off and running giving St. Clair a fitting birthday present with a 2-0 win over Hawaii Pacific Monday afternoon.
The win is the Lancers' fifth straight and second in three days as they improve to 10-1-1 overall, 6-0-1 PacWest, setting up a showdown Wednesday at BYU-Hawaii, the only other remaining unbeaten team in PacWest play.
CBU's unbeaten streak has now reached 10 in a row, moving within one of tying the program record, and it is the Lancers' 14th straight season with at least 10 wins.
The Sea Warriors drop to 8-4-2, 5-3-2.
"The players did a great job, and this was one of the best games we've played this year," said St. Clair. "As a coach, it was entertaining to watch. The girls were just clicking on all cylinders."
The Lancers out-shot the Sea Warriors, 19-7, including a 12-5 advantage in the first half, but they weren't able to break the through HPU defense until the final 45 minutes.
Right out of the intermission, Allard found herself on the receiving end of a Lindsay Vesling pass from the right side. Allard collected it and ripped a shot past a helpless Carianne Makino and into the net for a 1-0 Lancer lead.
"HPU's a good team, and it was a huge lift for us to score right out of halftime," said St. Clair. "The girls just took off from there."
In the 72nd minute, Fabiola Zanella da Silva scored for the second straight game, getting past the HPU defense and easily beating Makino to the far post.
Nicoline Jorgensen made three saves for her fifth shutout of the season. It was the Lancers' eighth.
