MORAGA, Calif. - The Gaels stayed hot on a warm Thursday evening in Moraga, as Saint Mary's defeated Sacrament State 4-0 for their third-straight win. 

The Gaels had scoring opportunities right out of the gate, with early shots from Sydney Middaugh and Briana Salvetti. In the 23rd minute, the transfer from Washington, Makena Carr, drove all the way up to the midfield and fed the ball to Middaugh just to the left of the penalty area. 

Middaugh made a sharp cut towards the top of the penalty area and was tripped up in the box, drawing a penalty kick. Emily Jensen took the penalty shot, putting it into the lower right side of the net to put the Gaels up 1-0 on Jensen's second goal of the year.

Early in the second half SMC took a 2-0 lead in the 51st minute. Marissa Garcia dribbled the ball all the way across midfield and into Hornet territory before sending a pass to Salvetti, who fired a shot that grazed the top of the crossbar as the ball went in. 

The Gaels struck quickly in the 58th minute, advancing their lead to 3-0 as Michaela Romo chipped the ball over to Jensen, who led the ball in front of Salvetti where she scored from the top of the box. Salvetti scored two of the four goals for the Gaels, giving her a total of eight for the season to lead the team. 

In the 83rd minute, Isabel Lendman had her first assist as a Gael, where she played a cross into the box from the far wing to Amaya Simoni-Walters who scored her first collegiate goal for the Gaels. That final goal made it 4-0 SMC to round out the scoring in the Gaels convincing win. 

Isabella Banuellos made two saves for her second career shutout in just her second start. The Gaels controlled the possession time in the match, having the ball 60% of the time. 

UP NEXT:

Saint Mary's will head south to take on UC Santa Barbara at 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 17.

#GaelsRise