ROCKLIN, Calif. - Freshman
Natasja Davis made a big impact off of the bench, netting a hat-trick in her Yotes debut to lead the College of Idaho to an opening game victory over William Jessup, taking the final score of 5-4.
Davis' 55 minutes of action were the most off the bench, and she made an immediate impact. In the 42nd minute, Davis netted her only goal of the first half, and she followed it up with a pair in the second half. The hat-trick goal came off of an intercepted Jessup pass back to the goalkeeper, as Davis was able to steal the ball and dribble around the keeper to score her third of the contest.
Jessup was able to strike first, as Kye Johnson got the goal just 18 minutes into the contest. From there, the Yotes would score two goals in a two minute span late in the first half to take a 2-1 lead going into halftime. Just under two minutes into the second half, Davis scored her second of the game on an assist by
Kaitlynn Mallett. Jessup answered with two goals in three minutes to tie the game at three.
Kyndra Lyons ended the Yotes scoring in the 85th minute as the Yotes would go on to win the game.
"Today was a great first match," said head coach
Brian Smith. "Being on the road, dealing with the heat, the girls were tremendous. Our game changers came on and made a huge difference. Our depth really carried us today. Our veterans are incredible leaders that have helped grow our new squad quickly. It was a very inspiring performance."
Next up for the Yotes is a game at Simpson University in Redding, Calif. coming up on Sunday at 10 am PT / 11 am MT.