IRVINE, California – It took extra time to settle, but Hawai'i Hilo Women's Soccer fell to Point Loma, 3-2, in the second overtime period of Saturday's inaugural Pacific West Conference Championship Match at the Orange County Great Park.
PLNU's Bethany Arabe managed to tap in the game-winning golden goal in the 104th minute to complete a late-game comeback stemming from the equalizing score in the 88th minute by Zoe Crockett.
Jazlynn Ellis put through both of the Vulcans scores early in the match at the 10th and 17th minutes to answer a second-minute goal by the Sea Lions.
Similar to the semifinal round matchup with Concordia (a 4-2 victory on Thursday), Point Loma managed to get on the scoreboard early with a score by Alana Diaz. Ellis responded shortly as she connected from Valeria Da Silva in front of the goal before juggling the ball between two PLNU defenders and bouncing it through the right side for the score. Minutes later, PacWest Conference Newcomer of the Year Savina Zamborini intercepted a pass near midfield to send PacWest Player of the Year Teani Arakawa down the lane. After colliding with two defenders, Ellis cleaned up the score for the momentary lead. Zamborini had also set up Da Silva on the previous score.
The Vulcans held strong through to the break, but all momentum seemed to shift to the Sea Lions coming out of halftime. After Ellis' second score, the Vulcans took just four shots the rest of the game (nine total). The Sea Lions tallied 24 (27 total) as Hawai'i Hilo goalkeeper Phoebe Barnes finished with six saves.
Hawai'i Hilo moved to a 13-2-3 overall record as defending national champion Point Loma moved to 15-2-1 on the season. The Vulcans were seeking their third conference title in four seasons after previously sharing a claim of the 2021 championship while winning it outright in 2022.
UP NEXT: NCAA West Regional First Round – Friday, Nov. 22 vs TBD (TBD, California)
NCAA REGION RANKINGS: Hawai'i Hilo came in at No. 4 in the latest NCAA West Regional Rankings released last Wednesday. In addition to the three conference champions from the PacWest (Point Loma), GNAC (Simon Fraser) and CCAA (Cal Poly Pomona/Cal State East Bay), the top four remaining teams in order of the final rankings will be selected for further postseason play. The final selections will be unveiled with the NCAA Selection Show on Monday, Nov. 18, at 2 p.m. on NCAA.com.
NCAA WEST REGIONAL: The NCAA West Regional First and Second Rounds are set for Friday, Nov. 22 and Sunday, Nov. 24 hosted by the top ranked teams to be unveiled with Monday's NCAA Selection Show. While yet unofficial, the Vulcans should expect to see their name pop up on the regional bracket. With seven teams now included in the region, only the No. 1 seed will receive a first-round bye.
