MESA, Ariz. --- The Park University Gilbert women's soccer team (1-0-0) opened the 2025 regular season with a 7-0 shutout over the Justice University Lions (0-1-0), Friday evening at Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz.
Led by a hat trick from senior forward Lauren Runnion (68', 69', 88'), and a pair of goals from freshman Kalei Ganotisi (13', 80'), the Buccaneers cruised to their most dominant season opener since 2022; when they defeated Indiana University-South Bend 10-0 in head coach Kali Harmon's first season at the helm.
Park-Gilbert wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as sophomore defender Bekah Sipinga netted the first goal of the season at the 3:30 mark. The second score came 10 minutes later courtesy of Ganotisi, who was making her collegiate debut Friday evening.
After taking a 2-0 lead into the halftime break, the Bucs didn't take their foot off the gas in the second half as they proceeded to score 5 goals in the final 45 minutes of play. Runnion began her scoring spree as she netted back-to-back goals within the span of a minute. Ganotisi netted her second goal of the night 10 minutes later, followed by a score from transfer forward Darienne Jaye Thompson in the 85th minute. Runnion, the senior from Avondale, Ariz., capped her career night and this contest with goal No. 3 with a little over a minute left in the match.
The Buccaneers gave themselves every opportunity to put a goal on the board, as they took 19 shots in the first half and 18 in the second. A lot of their offensive production can be attributed to Park-Gilbert's impressive defensive efforts. They controlled possession in the midfield and kept the ball far away from goalkeepers Journey Morimoto and Morgan Trail, who picked up the clean sheet. Justice University only tallied two shots, one shot on goal that was saved by Morimoto.
Last season, the Buccaneers never scored more than 3 goals in a game. They more than doubled that mark Friday evening, as this was the most goals scored in any game for Park-Gilbert since that 10-0 win over IUSB three years ago.
After starting 2025 in the win column, the Buccaneers will return to the pitch this Thursday, Aug. 28 at 6:00 p.m. MST, when they host the Oregon Tech Owls (1-0-0) at Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz.
