LONDON, Ont. - First-year midfielder Alyssa Desantis recorded the lone goal of the match to lead the Western Mustangs to a 1-0 win over the Waterloo Warriors on Saturday afternoon at Mustang Field.
 
"I thought the team played well. We were in control of the game and obviously we were defensively sound. Waterloo is a tough team and they defended us well on their side of the ball; they're very organized, they worked hard, they're physical, and they have some dangerous players on counter-attack," said Mustangs' head coach Martin Painter, commenting on the competitiveness of the formerly undefeated Warriors. "We executed well, but the hardest part of the game is scoring goals, especially against a team like Waterloo."
 
With the win, the Mustangs extend their winning streak to four games and improve to 5-1 on the season to move them to the top of the OUA West standings. Having been handed their first loss of the season, the Warriors now hold a 2-1-3 record and occupy fifth place in the divisional standings.
 
Desantis' goal was not only the game winner for the Mustangs, but her strike from the corner was also the first goal of her young Western career.
 
"It was awesome to be able to shift the game for the team. It was a high-intensity match and we were lucky to get a shot on net in those last couple minutes," said Densantis. "We're just trying to work on our scoring and attacking, but today we were lucky to get the win."
 
The first half was fairly one-sided, with the Mustang's offence doing well to create chances against the Warriors' physical defence. Western controlled possession well in the opening half, applying constant pressure to the Warrior's defence, finishing the half with two chances at the net which nearly broke open the scoring. Unfortunately, the Mustangs weren't able to convert on their chances, and went into halftime deadlocked at 0-0.
 
The second half was fairly reminiscent of the first, with the purple and white defence clamping down on the Waterloo strikers and limiting their shots on goal. As the game drew on, the Mustangs seemed to find their rhythm offensively, displaying quick ball movement and wearing down the Warriors defence to generate nine shots in the half.
 
Finally, with less than ten minutes remaining on the clock, Desantis scored off a corner kick to earn the 1-0 victory for the purple and white.
 
"There was a lot of positive energy on the field today. I thought there was a lot of good communication and we needed it," said Desantis.
 
"Having close games such as these is just the nature of the division. Waterloo is a very tough team and every team in our division is capable of winning on any given day, but we've already put up five wins this season and put ourselves in first place. You have to be able to win close games, and we've done that. It'd be nice to score a few more goals, but realistically, most of our game are going to be tight," said Painter.
 
The Mustangs will be back in action this Sunday, September 17, when they will travel to Waterloo to take on the 2-1-4 Golden Hawks at 1 pm.