Fresno, Calif.- Soccer season finally kicked off at Ramirez field as the Sunbirds beat Westminster College. An early goal tagged with stingy defensive and great goalie play, kick off the Sunbirds season on the right foot.

Junior forward Ashley Sherr found the back of the goal at the 8:48 mark to ignite the Sunbirds early. Diana Ortega set an across into the middle of the box that reflected off the goalie and to the feet of Sherr. Sherr wasted no time and sent the ball far post for the goal.

An early lead made Head Coach Erik Farfan very pleased. ”Anytime we can take an early advantage it allows us to build on something positive,” stated Farfan. “With the first goal, we were able to get into a rhythm for the game.”

The lead would stand as the first period came to an end.

Sherr would strike again in the second stanza to give the Sunbirds a bit of breathing room. At the 28:12 mark, Sherr received an across from Sister Amanda Sherr at the top of the box, which found the back of the net for the 2-0 lead.

The Sunbirds continued to keep the pressure on as they accumulated two more goals before time expired. An own goal, that came off a shot attempt by Samantha Hearnes, deflected off the defender and into the right side of the goal.

Tori Alvarez then joined the party as she capitalized off an across sent by Ashley Sherr and sent it pass the goalie and into the right side of the goal.

“We were able to stay aggressive and create opportunities to score,” said Farfan. “I was also pleased with the commitment to win the ball, our girls showed much effort by attempting many tackles throughout the game.”

The Griffins would score again to make the game 3-1, but Alvarez's goal was the icing on the cake to close out the 4-1 victory.