SPOKANE, Wash. – The University of San Francisco scored once and the defense made sure the goal stood up as the Dons defeated host Gonzaga 1-0 on Sunday afternoon.
 
Freshman Rodrigo Bueno scored the game winning goal in the in the 27^th minute. Fellow freshman Nonso Adimabua took the free quick and quickly sent it outside to Bueno who lobbed a long ball over the Bulldogs keeper who was caught off card by the Dons' quick attack.
 
It is the first career goal for Bueno.  For Adimabua it is his second collegiate assist. The Dons pulled off the road win starting seven freshmen. 
 
Ivo Neto helped get the Dons attack going, the native of São Paulo, Brazil finished the day with four shots, with three on goal.  He got the Dons' going with a pair of shots on goal in the first 13 minutes before finding the back of the net in the 27^th.
 
Gonzaga (1-4-0, 0-1-0 WCC) actually outshot the Dons on the afternoon.  The Bulldogs finished the day with 23 shots, 11 of which were on goal. USF (2-2-0, 1-0-0 WCC) finished with 10 shots, six on goal.
 
"I'm really proud of the team's effort, the guys battled and competed hard," said head coach Leonard Griffin. "Conference games are always tough, to get a win on the road in our first conference game is pretty special. It was a true team win today, and I'm really proud of the guys this is something we can absolutely build on."
 
Freshman keeper Brandon Keniston (1-0-0) earned his first collegiate win.  He got the start in goal and played the first 45 minutes.  In that time, he faced 11 shots and tallied a pair of saves. In the second half, the Dons turned keeper duties over to Alejandro Munoz who preserved the win by tallying five saves in his 45 minutes of action.
 
"The keepers did a phenomenal job of getting a shutout," said Griffin about his defense. "Shayan (Charalaghi) and Filip (Kanold) did a tremendous job in the middle of plugging holes and helping keep the clean sheet and provided a lot of stability for us in the back to help get the win."
 
The Bulldogs opened the contest with plenty of opportunities.  Gonzaga outshot the Dons 11-3 in the first half, they also boasted a 5-1 corner kick advantage. In the second they were just as active, outshooting the Dons 12-7. Bulldog forward Demitrius Kigeya was the primary culprit, tallying 11 shots with four on goal.
 
The Dons have already matched their win total from 2019 and surpassed their road and conference win totals. 
 
USF will return to action on Sunday, March 7 when they make their long-awaited home debut.  The Dons will square off against rival Santa Clara at 2:00 p.m. at Negoesco Stadium.