Sierra wins first-ever 3C2A Women's Soccer State title
MISSION VIEJO - The Sierra College women's soccer team won the 3C2A Women's Soccer State Championship with a 2-0 win over Golden West College on Sunday morning at Saddleback College. It was the first state title in program history for the Wolverines.
Sierra controlled play from the outset, outshooting Golden West 11-0 in the opening half of play. The Wolverines struck quickly when leading scorer Addison Johnson scored in the 6th minute for the early lead. The goal was a set piece where Taylor Ruiz sent a corner kick into the box and the ball was headed forward by Josie Young onto the foot of Johnson, who buried it into the net. It was Johnson's 16th goal of the season and second of the tournament.
Sierra picked up more momentum after scoring the opening goal and put continuous pressure on Golden West. The Wolverines extended the lead to 2-0 in the 36th minute when Olivia Sisto lofted a great ball to the far corner from 25-yards out to beat Golden West's goalkeeper Mia Cook to the far post. It was Sisto's third goal of the season and put Golden West into a big hole heading to the locker room at the half.
Sierra kept up the pressure in the second half and continued to pressure Golden West while minimizing the Rustler opportunities. Golden West finally recorded its first shot on goal in the 61st minute when Renata Salerno put a shot on net that was easily handled by Sierra goalkeeper Alexia Holdren.
The game remained 2-0 until the 70th minute when Golden West had its best scoring chance of the game. A ball was put into the box and Abby Quinlan got a head on the ball, but it went wide right of the goal as the score remained 2-0.
Sierra effectively ran out the clock over the final 20 minutes by controlling the ball while protecting their own end of the field. The Wolverines had one nervous moment in the final minutes when they nearly scored an own-goal for Golden West, but goalkeeper Alexia Holdren was again in the right place at the right time to preserve the shutout.
Sierra finished with a 17-3 advantage in total shots and a 6-2 advantage in shots-on-goal.
The 2025 state title was the first-ever in program history for Sierra. The Wolverines finish the season 19-2-4 overall while Golden West finishes 15-5-7.
Following the game, Sierra sophomore Josie Young was selected as the Tournament MVP after finishing the tournament with a goal and an assist.
(Brad Hoiseth, CCCSIA)
