Fullerton , CA — The first whistle for CUI vs CSUF on Saturday, February 23 blew 20 minutes past scheduled game time. The delay was due to incorrect field lines. Yet without skipping a beat after a long warm up, the CUI WLAX Eagles entered and ended their first away game in dominating fashion, defeating the Cal State Fullerton Titans 6-3. "I admit there was some confusion about the home team's field lines upon our arrival. In games, things we can't control like this, referees or other environmental factors can be frustrating - and we've definitely had our fair share of them so far - so I put it on the girls to excel beyond the uncontrollables. This time, excellence was demanded of them and they delivered," says Head Coach Michelle Mendoza. The Eagles put up an unanswered five-point lead in the first half against the Tritons. Junior midfielder Celine Rios (#17) at the draw helped CUI gain most of the game's offensive possession and led the scoring with three goals. Out of nine draw controls, the Eagles won six. Early on, defense frustrated any Titan possessions by causing three turnovers within the first five minutes of the game. Sophomore defender Ashlin Morey (#6), junior midfielder Tamia Shoshone (#23), and Rios contributed to the flurry. Rios put the Eagles on the board with an unassisted goal at 19:36 in the first half and CSUF took a time out immediately after in attempt to stop the Eagle's early momentum. Rios, unphased and unbothered, scored the next goal after two mintues nevertheless. Junior midfielder and captain Amanda Morgan (#9) devoured draw control for three draws between 16:26 and 9:00 in the first half. Off the circle, she gained three out of her six ground balls of the game. Senior attacker and captain Sam Leyesa (#3) and sophomore midfielder and newcomer Destiny Rivas (#2) scored the next two CUI goals off of free position shots. CUI possessed the ball with either their keeper, sophomore Yessenia Alvarez (#15) or on offense for most of the last ten minutes of the half until CSUF scored their first goal with just under two minutes to go. "A lot of good transition started with solid 1v1 defense, saves and knockdowns on our defending end," says junior defender and captain Heather Hersh (#4). Transitions such as these led to CUI scoring the first two goals of the second half, one unassisted by Leyesa and another free position goal by Rios. With all the intention to continue defensive prowess in the second half, CUI's intensity increased after halftime, sometimes to an extreme. "In the second half, I acknowledge that we fouled too often," says Coach Mendoza, "Our team learned the hard lesson of how important defensive control is from this game." CUI was set back by two yellow cards in the second half, which may have contributed to the two and final back-to-back goals CSUF scored in the last five minutes of the game. After the Eagles spent most of the second half possessing the ball at an easy pace or denying CSUF from successful clears, the final score of the game was 6-3. CUI WLAX takes on the provisional team of Fullerton College on Saturday, March 2 at 11AM.