Saturday, October 24
Santa Clara, CA
1:00 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
9-2-5, 3-2-1
1
at
1
Santa Clara
7-2-7, 3-0-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Mary's (CA) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Santa Clara | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
10/24/2026 5:10:00 PM | Women's Soccer
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The Saint Mary's women's soccer team battled to a gritty 1-1 draw against Santa Clara on Saturday afternoon, highlighted by yet another outstanding defensive performance despite playing nearly the entire second half down a player. Brittany Holden scored her second goal of the season, while goalkeeper Kate Plachy tied her season high with eight saves to help the Gaels preserve the draw.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Santa Clara got on the board early, finding the back of the net just four minutes into the match. That didn't slow down the Gaels though, who wasted no time responding just 25 seconds later. The play began with a throw-in from Aleiyah Schexnayder to Elizabeth Vega on the left side. Vega worked the ball toward the middle before finding Brittany Holden on a beautiful cutback through ball into the 18-yard box. Holden turned and fired a left-footed shot into the bottom right corner of the net to even the score at one. The goal marked Holden's second of the season while Vega notched her first assist of the season. Both teams finished the opening half with five shots apiece and the score remained even at one heading into the break.
The Gaels were tested early in the second half when Maddie Lucas received a red card in the 46th minute after an initial yellow was reviewed and upgraded to a red, leaving Saint Mary's to play nearly the entire second half down a player. Despite the disadvantage, the Gaels put together an impressive defensive effort, battling to keep the Broncos out of the net and earn another road point.
Santa Clara turned up the offensive pressure, tallying 20 shots in the second half alone, but the Gaels stood strong. Plachy came up with several crucial stops to record seven second-half saves and tied her season high with eight on the afternoon. Despite the Broncos' efforts, the Gaels held firm through the final whistle to preserve the 1-1 draw.
GAME NOTES
LOOKING AHEAD
Saint Mary's returns to action next week with a pair of West Coast Conference matchups. The Gaels will first travel to Pacific on Wednesday, October 28 to take on the Tigers with kickoff slated for 6:00 p.m. before hosting Seattle U on Saturday, October 31 at 1:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at smcgaels.com/tickets and additional match information can be found at smcgaels.com.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
HOW IT HAPPENED
Santa Clara got on the board early, finding the back of the net just four minutes into the match. That didn't slow down the Gaels though, who wasted no time responding just 25 seconds later. The play began with a throw-in from Aleiyah Schexnayder to Elizabeth Vega on the left side. Vega worked the ball toward the middle before finding Brittany Holden on a beautiful cutback through ball into the 18-yard box. Holden turned and fired a left-footed shot into the bottom right corner of the net to even the score at one. The goal marked Holden's second of the season while Vega notched her first assist of the season. Both teams finished the opening half with five shots apiece and the score remained even at one heading into the break.
The Gaels were tested early in the second half when Maddie Lucas received a red card in the 46th minute after an initial yellow was reviewed and upgraded to a red, leaving Saint Mary's to play nearly the entire second half down a player. Despite the disadvantage, the Gaels put together an impressive defensive effort, battling to keep the Broncos out of the net and earn another road point.
Santa Clara turned up the offensive pressure, tallying 20 shots in the second half alone, but the Gaels stood strong. Plachy came up with several crucial stops to record seven second-half saves and tied her season high with eight on the afternoon. Despite the Broncos' efforts, the Gaels held firm through the final whistle to preserve the 1-1 draw.
GAME NOTES
- Kate Plachy tied her season high with eight saves, seven of those coming in the second half. She is currently tied for fourth in the WCC with 44 saves this season.
- Brittany Holden recorded her second goal of the season.
- Freshman Elizabeth Vega picked up the first assist of her collegiate career.
- Molly Silva and Anna Emperador each had full 90 minute efforts and lead the Gaels in minutes played this season, with Silva totaling 1,422 and Emperador following with 1,411.
- For the first time in program history, Saint Mary's recorded results in back-to-back meetings against Santa Clara after a 1-1 draw a season ago in 2025.
LOOKING AHEAD
Saint Mary's returns to action next week with a pair of West Coast Conference matchups. The Gaels will first travel to Pacific on Wednesday, October 28 to take on the Tigers with kickoff slated for 6:00 p.m. before hosting Seattle U on Saturday, October 31 at 1:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at smcgaels.com/tickets and additional match information can be found at smcgaels.com.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
Players Mentioned
D
/ Women's SoccerF
/ Women's SoccerMF
/ Women's SoccerGK
/ Women's SoccerD
/ Women's SoccerD
/ Women's SoccerMF
/ Women's SoccerTeam Stats
SMC
SCU
Goals
1
1
Shots
7
25
Shots on Goal
3
9
Saves
8
2
Corners
1
11
Fouls
7
8
Scoring Plays
Kennedy Schoennauer (13)
Assisted By: Tessa Ferguson
GOAL by SCU Schoennauer, Kennedy Assist by Ferguson, Tessa.
04:00
Brittany Holden (2)
Assisted By: Elizabeth Vega
GOAL by SMC Holden, Brittany Assist by Vega, Elizabeth.
04:25
Game Leaders
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
def
Shots
1
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
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