April 19, 2013
DAVIS, Calif. - The San Diego State Lacrosse team had the lead at halftime but couldn't hold on, as the Aztecs lost at UC Davis, 19-12, Friday evening in Davis, Calif.
With the loss, SDSU (8-6, 3-3 MPSF) falls into tie for fourth place in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation standings with USC (6-9, 3-3). The top four teams in the conference standings advance to the MPSF Championship, beginning May 2, in Eugene, Ore.
Sophomore Sophie Koubek scored a team-high three goals for the Aztecs, while junior Christina Ricciardulli, sophomore Bailey Ewing and freshman Alexa Comfort scored two goals apiece. Sophomore Madison Formwalt and freshman Felice Artuso each scored one goal.
Artuso led SDSU with five draw controls and sophomore Grace Korandovich finished with four. Sophomores Catherine Shepardson, Jade Jones and Ricciardulli each scooped up two groundballs.
It was a tale of two halves for the Aztecs on Friday. SDSU led by one at halftime, 10-9, while holding a 13-7 edge in draw controls and finishing the half tied in shots, 12-12. However, UC Davis (5-8, 2-4) outscored the Aztecs in the second half, 10-2, with an 8-5 advantage in draw controls, and out-shot SDSU 15-8 in the final 30 minutes. For the game, the Aggies also had a 17-10 edge in groundballs, while SDSU committed 20 turnovers after entering the game leading the conference in fewest turnovers committed.
UCD opened the game by taking a 3-0 lead, but SDSU eventually recovered to knot the score, 7-7, on Comfort's goal off Shepardson's pass with 6:06 left before halftime, capping off a 3-0 run of its own. A score by Formwalt gave the Aztecs their first lead of the game, 8-7, with 2:28 remaining in the half, and consecutive goals by Artuso and Comfort made it 10-8 with 1:03 to go before intermission.
But UCD controlled the second half, and after Ewing's score put SDSU ahead by one, the Aggies scored three-straight goals to pull in front, 13-11, and finished the game on a 6-0 run to win convincingly.
Hannah Mirza scored a game-high five goals for UCD, while Elizabeth Datino had four goals and Meghan Jordan finished with two goals and six assists. Sara Quero recorded four groundballs and caused three turnovers defensively.
The Aztecs continue their two-game road trip on Sunday, April 21, as they take on No. 15 Stanford, beginning at 1 p.m. PT.