The Benedictine Mesa women's soccer team battled through a tough matchup against Hope International but ultimately fell 4–0 at home.
Hope International opened the match on the front foot, pressing the Redhawks' defense and forcing goalkeeper
Thea Draganova into several early saves. After multiple attempts, the Royals broke through in the 9th minute when
Shelby Kain scored the opening goal off an assist from
Jordan Galvin. Just four minutes later,
Ana Pacheco doubled the lead to make it 2–0.
Benedictine responded with chances of their own, including shots from
Brylee Rod and
Paula Gonzalez Castro, but Hope's keeper held firm. Despite the Redhawks generating looks on goal, Hope carried a 2–0 advantage into halftime.
The second half continued in a similar pattern, with Draganova making key stops to keep Benedictine within striking distance. However, Hope extended their lead in the 64th minute when
Frida Vizcarra scored. The Royals sealed the result in the 77th minute with a goal by
Kira Christenson, pushing the score to 4–0.
Benedictine fought to the final whistle, recording late efforts from
Cahryn Rod,
Brylee Rod, and
Madison Rubio, but couldn't find the back of the net.
Key Players
Looking Ahead
The Redhawks return to action on Thursday, September 15, when they hit the road to face Embry-Riddle.
