COSTA MESA – Women's soccer rolled past Hawaii Pacific in a dominant 3-0 win on Senior Day 2026 at the VU Soccer Complex, Saturday morning.
Hailey Garvin shined amid the senior day celebrations, netting the opening goal late in the first half and setting up the third goal for
Vanessa Pastrana to seal the win. It was Garvin's second multi-point career game, and first time since October 2023 (1 goal, 1 assist, LPU). Also scoring was freshman
Jennifer Alvarez, who bagged her third goal in four games to jump to five total on the season. Her goal haul is currently the third highest in the Pacific West Conference and most by any freshman.
"I'm so grateful for our seniors," shared Head Coach
Emily Reynolds. "They have worked so hard to build this program into what it is today. Great win for them and the team."
Vanguard wins three out of four in the conference homestand, improving to 5-5-1 overall and 3-1 in league action. The Sharks drop to 0-10-2, 0-3-1 in the PacWest.
The Lions also celebrated eight seniors post-match, congratulating
Grayton Normand,
Emily Wagner,
Kaitlyn Currier,
Hailey Garvin,
Jaylen Kinong,
Beatrice Johnson and
Adiah Edwardson, and
Caelyn Armijo for their collegiate journeys.
What Happened? Blistering heat didn't stop the Lions from posting consecutive season-high shooting performances. They slammed 30 total shots on the board with 18 on target for the match and got going within the opening three minutes with a strike from inside the left side of the box from Alvarez which skirted off the sidenetting.
Aneala Sibayan forced the first HPU save of the morning two minutes, flaring a shot to the bottom left that was parried away for a corner kick.
The Sharks had their only shot of the half in the 15
th minute, with a cross attempt from HPU's left back awkwardly bouncing toward
Grayton Normand and forcing a tip over the net for a corner kick.
VU didn't give the visitors much a kick for the remainder of the first period. The Sharks struggled to break midfield with VU trapping on HPU's goal kicks and Hawaii Pacific's low defensive block gave room for VU to play with space across the pitch. The Lions stacked eight shots in a row off target across the midway point of the half, but caught rhythm to stack key chances in the final seven minutes of the period. Their quality chances started when Garvin met a free kick charging her run to front post, and looping a header that just glanced past the far post.
Minutes 39 and 40 saw successive VU strikes at the top of the box, first from Pastrana and then
Avery Hanhauser, both forcing saves from opposite bottom corners.
The Lion breakthrough came from a simple throw in from the right wing. HPU were passive to close down the space as a cross dropped in the box and bobbled in between a pair of Shark defenders before Garvin tapped it in on the half-volley. The 42
nd minute goal proved the difference at the break.
Hawaii Pacific had a much-improved second half, but VU were clinical in punishing the Sharks in transition to secure the win. The Sharks were physical up top with a pair of strong challenges in the 51
st minute, but their attempt to linkup with their onrushing midfield went awry. They gave up the ball in the middle, which VU quickly swung to
Megan Charley on the left wing. The junior sped past her defender and placed a cross at the front post for Alvarez, who slipped between the center backs to control the cross with her chest, and poke the shot past the keep with the right toe.
Hawaii Pacific suffered the same fate for goal three in the 69
th minute, after HPU progressed high up the pitch with strong holdup play from their strikers. The pass central to find the supporting midfield was gifted to Garvin, however, who turned inside before slicing a through ball to Pastrana. The well-placed through ball allowed Pastrana to approach the angle first-time within the box, and the freshman cleverly swept her left-footed strike at the keeper's near post as VU mounted a 3-0 win on senior day.
What's Next? The Lions start a crucial conference road trip at Concordia (RV) on Saturday, October 10 at 4pm.
