Irvine Valley's women's soccer team dominated the first half of action in its home opener on Friday.
The Lasers scored three goals in the opening half, including two in the first 14 minutes and that was enough in a 3-0 win over MiraCosta.
"It was a great performance and a good start," said fourth-year IVC coach Joe Supe, who guided the Lasers to their first playoff appearance in 20 years last season. "Overall, I was really pleased."
Irvine Valley got off to a quick start, pressuring MiraCosta right off the bat. And in the 10th minute, sophomore forward Crystal Lefebvre found the back of the net. Lefebvre led Irvine Valley with eight goals last year. Freshman midfielder Alison Martinez earned the assist.
Martinez got a goal of her own four minutes later with a shot from near the top of the box. Sophomore defender Christina Anderson picked up the assist.
Behind the play of freshman midfielders Peyton Purcell, Hannah Thetford, Martinez and Merna Mousa and sophomore midfielder Virginia Hickman, IVC controlled possession much of the rest of the half.
The Lasers made it a 3-0 game just before halftime. Freshman forward Johana Abarca took a pass from Thetford, raced past a MiraCosta defender on the right side and then scored to the near post.
Irvine Valley's defense, led by sophomores Marissa Perez and Anderson did the rest. MiraCosta out-shot IVC in the second half, but the Lasers were still in full control. Perez directed the backline and cleared anything that came her way. Anderson headed a ball off the line in the 70th minute.
Sophomore goalie Herminia Verduzco started and made two saves in 75 minutes, while freshman Rebecca Trejo played the final 15 minutes and also made two saves.
"We got a good chance to look at a lot of players and look at them in different positions," Supe said. "We really got a chance to see how they functioned as a team. I thought we got great work rates from a lot of players today, especially Payton, Hannah, Alison, Johana and of course Marissa."
Irvine Valley will play again at home on Tuesday. The Lasers host Palomar, another team from the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference, at 3 p.m.
