RIVERSIDE, Calif. – It wasn't always pretty, but Idaho (1-1-0) defeated UC Riverside (1-1-0), 1-0, in front of a very pro-Vandal crowd on Sunday night.
 
"Really, really proud of our players for their fight tonight," said head coach Derek Pittman.  "We talked yesterday about some adjustments we needed to make going into tonight's game and I thought our group did an excellent job implementing those.
 
"We were pretty fortunate on the goal, an own goal, but sometimes you make your own luck.  Just really proud of our players for fighting until the bitter end and getting the result tonight."
 
Idaho got on the board in the 89^th minute.  Taylor Brust sent in a low ball from midfield, trying to find the forwards up top, but it was out of reach.  However, the Vandals were on the fortunate end of a tough bounce, as the pass deflected off a Riverside defender and slipped past the goalkeeper.
 
Makayla Presgrave was tremendous in net for the Vandals, making five saves and earning her first shutout.
 
"Mak came up with four or five really big saves when we needed her to, and that's exactly what we ask of her, to be able to keep us in matches," Pittman said.  "She did an excellent job and I'm really proud of her for getting the shutout tonight."
 
The Vandals had a handful of quality opportunities in the second half, but couldn't seem to find the back of the net.  Myah Merino had the best opportunity, stealing the ball at midfield and breaking toward net, but her shot went just wide.
 
It was a chippy contest, with eight total yellow cards.
 
"We knew that UC Riverside had some bite to them, weren't afraid to be physical," said Pittman.  "We've never been a team that shied away from physical play.  There were a lot of fouls, and we talked about that at halftime that the players needed to anticipate contact and even at times initiate contact because we couldn't back down for 50-50 balls.  I thought our players showed an excellent resolve in the second half, negating what UC Riverside was trying to do and ultimately getting that result tonight."
 
The Vandals will regroup ahead of Friday night's matchup with Boise State, the first NCAA Women's Soccer game to be played indoors.  Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., with a FanFest Tailgate starting at 3:30 p.m.
 
Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Idaho soccer by following the team on Twitter and Instagram, @VandalsSoccer, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals Women's Soccer.

For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com.  Fans can also find Idaho on Twitter and Instagram, @Idaho_Vandals, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals.