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Oakland Soul ties Pleasanton RAGE with huge PK save by GK Dina Frenkel

Jonathan Comeaux

Oakland Soul came away with a 0-0 tie against Pleasanton RAGE on Thursday, May 29 at Merritt College, bringing their record to 2-1-1 through four games. Soul is now passing the 1/3 mark of the 12-game season, currently in fourth place with a points per match average of 1.75 behind Stockton, Pleasanton, and San Juan FC.

Coming off two 5-nil wins in a row, Oakland couldn’t convert the chances they generated on the night. Kaytlin Brinkman had an early shot on target in the 14th minute, Miranda Nild sent a shot wide five minutes later, while their two biggest chances came within a minute of each other in the second half when Shae Murison lasered a shot wide in the 53rd followed by Brinkman skipping a shot narrowly far of the left post.

The biggest play of the game came in the 38th minute after Pleasanton was awarded a penalty kick following a handball in the box. Diving to her right was goalkeeper Dina Frenkel to make the huge save, keeping things scoreless.

Soul looks ahead to a critical weekend match against Cal Storm in Davis this Sunday, June 1. Storm is currently 1-1-1 but has been a contender in the Nor Cal Division each season.

Talking Points

Dina Frenkel stepped into the goalkeeper spot for the first time, making a huge save in her club debut. When Pleasanton was awarded a PK in the 38th minute, Frenkel made herself known to the fans with a big diving save.

“Dina kept us in the game with that PK save. Shout out to coach Anne [Whipple], who had seen that before and had a great scout on Pleasanton,” coach Jessica Clinton said.

It’s a good sign for Soul, who have been without two-year starter Layla Armas. Frenkel comes to Soul after finishing her freshman year at Purdue. She was raised in San Francisco and attended St. Ignatius.

Some of Thursday’s match felt like watching Oakland Roots, where Soul would put itself in good positions to score, but came up short each time.

Brinkman’s look in the 54th minute was one of the best chances, where she received a through-ball in Pleasanton’s box, but rolled her shot a few inches wide of the left post. With four minutes left, Murison received a long ball from a free kick in a dangerous area just a few feet in front of the right post, but sent a shot on the volley high over the crossbar.

“From a finishing standpoint, we have to learn as we go. Our rotation of players changes and that means you have to sync up really quickly. But we did have goal-scoring opportunities and we didn’t put them away,” Clinton said.

Late in the game, Arianna Veland shouted toward her teammates to pick up the intensity. Clinton thinks the day had too much of a college feel rather than the professional standard they are seeking.

“We made some silly choices, that’s when you start seeing the college-like decisions come out and we’re not executing what we’re looking to do in certain moments. When legs are fatigued or they are stretched mentally, you see the easy college decisions happen and not what’s best in the moment,” Clinton said.

In fourth place, things are already heating up in the Nor Cal Division. Arguably the most competitive of all divisions throughout the USL W League, there is just one playoff position available among all nine teams.

“It’s fun, right? We’re not in Year 1, the league has grown. There’s an investment in women’s teams and that’s where the separation is coming from,” Clinton said.

San Juan FC has burst onto the scene in its first W League season, currently leading the division at 3-1-0. Although brand new, Clinton is well aware of the quality of San Juan. They aren’t creeping up on anyone.

“San Juan has invested in their team, not just from a player standout, but players outside of their region. They brought in a group of players from Florida; they are the SEC Conference of California. But they have a great youth program and have youth national team players; they are well-known. Storm and Cargo have a lot of investment too, it’s upping the ante on some of these teams, and it’s really nice to see,” Clinton said.

Oakland is now set to play Cal Storm this Sunday. Despite Storm sitting in seventh, the two sides have regularly competed for the top of the division. In their four meetings, it’s still a perfect split at 1-2-1, meaning Sunday’s matchup could be another barnburner.

“Early on, our conversations are that we’re a team that doesn’t accept losing, but we can’t expect to go on the field and walk all over teams,” Clinton said.

After playing Storm, Soul will look ahead to the big June 7 double-header as the opening match against Stockton Cargo. The Coliseum could bring a crowd that some of these players have never experienced.

“We’d love to see a huge crowd and have it be rowdy. That’s important for us. Some of our players have played in front of crowds like that in different settings. That’s part of the experience. We practice with our sports psychologist on visualization and being in the zone, but its still the Coliseum, so we’ll see,” Clinton said.

Clinton finds comfort knowing they have multiple players who were in Soul’s last two double-headers, like Brinkman, Nild, Sam Tran, and Henar Urteaga.

“We have a group of players who have played in the double-header before, so that’s also helpful. We’ll do everything we can to prepare them, but there’s still that gameday process,” Clinton said.

Starting Lineup

Timeline

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