WHITTIER, Calif.–
Diego Saldivar and the Whittier College defense made sure another strong push at Memorial Stadium resulted in a point Friday night.
Saldivar recorded the first shutout of his NCAA career, the Poets held UC Santa Cruz to six shots, and Whittier battled the Banana Slugs to a 0-0 draw in non-conference action.
Whittier spent much of the opening half on the front foot, taking five shots while limiting UC Santa Cruz to just two.
Nicholas Coop helped lead the early attack, while
Jack Born and
Kevin Bravo also looked to create chances going forward. The Poets earned both of their corner kicks before halftime and kept pressure around the attacking third.
At the other end, Saldivar made his lone save of the first half to keep the match scoreless going into the break.
Whittier turned up the pressure even further in the second half.
The Poets generated eight shots over the final 45 minutes while holding the Slugs to four. Coop put an attempt on goal, and Whittier continued to create looks through Edgar Neco,
Jeremiah Solares,
Roberto Orozco, and others.
Neco provided a spark off the bench with a team-high four shots, while Coop finished with three. Bravo added two attempts, and Born, Orozco and Solares each recorded a shot as Whittier continued searching for the breakthrough.
Although the winning goal never came, the Poets kept UC Santa Cruz from finding one at the other end.
Saldivar made three saves after halftime, including several stops as the Banana Slugs looked for a late breakthrough. He finished the night with four saves across all 90 minutes to secure his first NCAA clean sheet in just his second collegiate appearance.
Whittier's back line played another key role in the result.
Orozco went the full 90 minutes,
Jack Hindmarsh logged 83 and
Ben Harrison added 76 as the Poets held UC Santa Cruz to only four shots on goal. The Banana Slugs also went the entire match without earning a corner kick.
Whittier finished with a 13-6 advantage in shots and held the visitors without a corner while earning two of its own.
Through two matches, the Poets remain unbeaten and have allowed just one goal across 180 minutes, with Friday's defensive effort providing another positive step early in the season.
Whittier continues its five-game season-opening homestand on Saturday, September 5, against Willamette University. Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
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