University of San Francisco Athletics

Box Score

SAN FRANCISCO—After three straight losses, the Dons battled difficult conditions and came out with their biggest win of the season as they beat Gonzaga 1-0 in West Coast Conference action Friday afternoon.
 
"I was very proud of our guys because this was our most significant game of the year," San Francisco head coach Erik Visser said. "For us to come here in difficult conditions, I give a lot of credit to our guys. Gonzaga's a very good team."
 
Gonzaga (9-6-3, 4-4-3 WCC) came into the game with a RPI of 21 and looks like a team bound for the NCAA Tournament and had wins over two Top 25 teams but has struggled with the Dons in recent years. In the second round of WCC play, San Francisco was 3-0-1 since 2009 going into the contest.
 
The Dons (7-10-2, 4-6-1 WCC) got on the board early when in the 18th minute Liam Kelly scored from about 18 yards out off a pass form Mauricio Diaz De Leon to give them the 1-0 lead. It is Kelly's third goal of the season.
 
"We scored an early goal in the first half and I think the guys battled," Visser said. "The guys deserved this."
 
Chase Hauser made his first start since Oct. 25 and was stellar in goal. He anchored the defense and made a brilliant save down the stretch on a penalty kick by Lars Ludwig, picking up his third shutout of the season. The Dons have seven shutouts on the season.
 
It was a big win for a squad that had aspirations of winning a WCC championship and is determined to finish strong in the season finale at Portland on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in the WCC Game of the Week.
 
"This team doesn't give up and they could have easily done so," Visser said. "They want to prove to themselves that this is a very good team."