Nov. 2, 2012
Final Stats | Final Box | Highlights
SAN DIEGO -- Top-seeded and No. 6/9/6 San Diego State blanked No. 4 seed UNLV, 3-0, in the semifinal round of the 2012 Mountain West Women's Soccer Championship on Friday night at SDSU Sports Deck. With the victory, the Aztecs run their unbeaten streak to 12 and now face second-seeded New Mexico on Sunday with the tournament title on the line.
SDSU will be making its fourth championship game appearance and first since 2009 when it won its first MW tourney title with a 1-0 victory over Brigham Young.
Sophomore Hannah Keane, who entered the contest with four goals on the year, tallied the game-winner for the Aztecs at the 3:37 mark on a rebound off the crossbar. It marks Keane's second career game-winning goal. SDSU also received scores from senior Megan Jurado in the 26th minute and one from sophomore Haley Locker at the 66:02 mark.
From the start, San Diego State looked determined to take control and it did just that in the fourth minute when Keane was able to find an opening in the Rebel defense. After Locker just missed off the crossbar, Keane fired the rebound toward the net and it connected to give SDSU an early 1-0 advantage.
The Aztecs remained in command of the contest and exerted their dominance by adding another goal at the 25:59 mark. Junior Haley Palmer found Jurado, who created space and put a well-placed ball into the upper right-hand corner of the net from 20 yards out. The goal was No. 14 of the year for Jurado, which ranks second most in school history for a single season.
SDSU was able to keep UNLV from getting going offensively and went into halftime sporting the same lead. The Aztecs held the Rebels without a single shot in the first, holding a 6-0 advantage in shots (5-0 in shots on goal).
UNLV was finally able to tally its first two shots of the contest early on in the second half. The momentum, however, shifted back into SDSU's favor as it put the game out of reach in the 67th minute when Kelsey Booth located Locker along the right side of the pitch. The forward then lofted a high-arching shot, which found the upper left corner of the cage and eventually provided the final margin.
On the game, the Aztecs enjoyed an advantage in both shots and shots on goal. SDSU outshot UNLV, 10-4, and finished with a 6-2 edge in shots on goal. Redshirt sophomore Rachel Boaz played all 90 minutes in goal and notched two saves en route to her 18th win of 2012.
San Diego State now moves on to the MW Championship game on Sunday. First tap is set for 1 p.m. PT at SDSU Sports Deck.