Wahine soccer blanked on the road

Hawaii goalkeeper Lex Mata put together one of her finest games in saving a career-high 12 shots at San Francisco on Sunday, but an overwhelming shots advantage by the Dons took its toll in a 2-0 victory by the hosts.

The West Coast Conference team (7-3) got off 26 attempts to UH’s four, although the Rainbow Wahine (3-3-1) managed to keep it scoreless through halftime. UH was bidding for its first win at USF but instead took its first road loss of the season.

“USF is just such an athletic, pacey team,” UH coach Michele Nagamine said in a postgame phone interview. “They had speed everywhere. But our defense actually hung in there pretty well. They have some pretty dynamic players up top. Alexis Mata had another great game and made some really incredible saves, but we had a really, really hard time getting control of the ball.”

UH was shut out for the second time this season and first since the opener to then-No. 11 Texas A&M.

Nagamine said her team had problems with the artificial turf at Negoesco Stadium. It was a different brand than most such fields.

Instead of the usual black rubber pellets in the turf, “it looked like cork or coconut husk. We had four or five people bleeding. Blood everywhere, shorts, socks, jerseys. … I’d never seen anything like it.”

Samantha Jehnings and Cassidy George found the net for USF in the 58th and 65th minutes.

The Wahine conclude nonconference play with a consecutive-day set against North Dakota State on Saturday and Grand Canyon on Sunday at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium.