The California Lutheran University Regals soccer team won by a score of 4-0 on Friday, Oct. 25 against the University of Redlands on senior night to clinch a postseason spot in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament.

Coming off a tough loss to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, this was a needed win for the Regals to gain momentum moving forward in the postseason.

The Regals started strong right out of the gate with junior forward Alexandra Fagerberg scoring in the 10th minute. Fagerberg assisted junior defender Trinity Martinez in the 78th minute and had another goal in the 79th minute. The score was 3-0 until junior midfielder Mackenzie Boulware got in on the action and scored in the 84th minute.

Sophomore goalkeeper Alexa Soto did not allow any Redlands goals. She made an acrobatic save when a shot on goal from Redlands came up high, jumping up and managing to put her hand on the ball, keeping the Regals in the lead.

“This win was significant because we needed a win to get into the conference tournament. It was crucial that we found a way to get three points tonight, and now with a win we get a chance to play longer in the season,” Head Coach Frank Marino said.

Coming in with a 6-2-2 record in conference, this win kept the Regals in second place behind Pomona-Pitzer who have a 9-1 record in conference, with its one loss against the Regals.

“Any win in the conference is a huge win; because our conference is so strong, and anytime you can get three points, that’s also huge,” Marino said.

Maddy Griess and Zandra Stewart were highlighted prior to the start of the match for senior night.

Marino said despite the win, there was room for improvement.

“It just came down to the way we play. We were creating chances in the first half but we just didn’t do a great job of finishing them,” Marino said. “Second half we just did a really great job of finishing our chances and it created some distance and put the game away.”

Fagerberg and Soto chimed in on what this win meant to them and the rest of the team.

“It’s a really a big win for us because that means it guarantees us a spot in the SCIAC tournament which is a big deal. Our next game against Occidental is really big because it determines our place, which determines if we play at home or not,” Fagerberg said.

Soto said the win gives the team a bout of confidence.

“We stayed relaxed because when we get anxious or we get super nervous, we mess up, so it was good to see that we were calm and relaxed the whole time,” Soto said. “My teammates job is to score and my job is to defend, so them scoring makes me feel more at peace and it pushes me to defend for them.”

After defeating Trinity University on Sunday, Oct. 27, the Regals have one game left in the regular season at Occidental College on Wednesday, Oct. 30 at 7 p.m.