Sonoma State Defeats Utah Tech 10-4

by Kyle Smith

The Seawolves defeated the Utah Tech Trailblazers by a score of 10-4 at Casa Grande High School on Saturday, March 1st at 12pm. Sonoma State is now 4-2 on the season.

Standout performances from the game include three former Oak Park High School teammates: sophomore goalie Miles Dillingham (23 saves, 85.4% save percentage), junior Captain Benen Powers (3 G's, 3 A's, 4 ground balls), junior Captain Dylan Hardy (5 ground balls). Other notable contributors include senior midfielder Devin Schulte (2 G's), junior attackman Nick Frangione (2 G's), and sophomore face-off specialist John Heck (7 Ground balls). Two freshmen, Jack Engblom and Jackson Garcia, also scored their first career goals in the contest.

The Seawolves got off to a hot start, scoring twice in the first two minutes of the game. First, it was freshman Josh Cooke who scored first on a nice step down shot around a defender. Josh has been limited with a knee injury since playing Stanford, but the lefty has found a way to contribute in his limited time on the field, scoring goals in two straight weeks. Next, it was George Oehm who found Benen Powers cutting through the middle of the defense on an unsettled slow-break opportunity for an easy goal.

To complete the scoring in the first quarter, Ryan Kane dodged from X and made a great read to find Jack Engblom for a step-down bounce shot to put the Seawolves up 3-0 after the first. Engblom has been contributing on both offense and defense as of late, working as a true two-way midfielder.

Both defenses stepped up in the second quarter, with each team allowing only one goal. The Seawolves were fortunate to score following a risky clearing pass down field when Powers scooped up the ground ball and raced towards the goal. On his way, he was able to draw a close defender up field to free up Jackson Garcia for his first career goal. It was a selfless play by the captain and a great example of his increased assist numbers this season.

The Sonoma defense was stingy throughout the game, allowing only one goal in the first half and killing all 5 extra-man opportunities in the game. Miles Dillingham had a career high 23 saves on the afternoon, recording 7 saves in the first quarter alone. Dillingham seems to be playing better each week, and was named to the Honor Roll for MCLA Pearl Goalie of the Week for his performance. Close defender Dylan Hardy gobbled up five ground balls and was able to generate a numbers advantage going the other way on multiple occasions throughout the game.

In the second half, sloppy transition led to short possessions for both teams, limiting the offensive flow throughout the half. In the third, the Seawolves were able to force the trailblazers into a failure to advance with an aggressive trap, setting up Powers for an opportunity for a heads up play on a quick whistle. Powers picked up the ball on a full sprint and took advantage of the quick whistle to attack the cage and find the back of the net. Powers would score the following goal, unassisted, on a high bounce shot on the run to increase the Seawolves lead to 6-2.

Senior midfielder Devin Schulte scored twice late in the game, both on inside feeds from X. Attackman Nick Frangione scored two goals in the fourth, the first on a nice assist from freshman Stas McClone in transition. The play was set up by another freshman, Kaden Silva, who reached out full extension on the run to snag a bouncing ball out of the air and push the transition opportunity.

In the end, the Seawolves won 10-4, moving to 4-2 on the season and ending their six game home stand to start the year. Sonoma will go on the road for their next four games, beginning this weekend when they travel to San Luis Obisbo to take on undefeated (6-0) WCLL opponent Cal Poly. Cal Poly is currently ranked #3 in the country. The game will be played at 1pm and will be live streamed (see our instagram account for link).

Go Seawolves!