Sept. 28, 2014
FRESNO, Calif. -
San Diego State-Fresno State Final Box | Video Replay
San Diego State, preseason Mountain West favorites and back-to-back league champions, earned a 4-2 victory Sunday afternoon at Fresno State. With its third straight win, SDSU improved to 7-2-1 and 2-0 within the conference. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, fell to 1-10 (0-2 MW).
The Aztecs got on the board in the 14th minute off a beautiful goal from Meggie Gulczynski. After San Diego State earned a corner kick, senior Kelsey Booth quick tapped it to Gulczynski, who touched it once and sent in a high-arching diagonal that found the back of the net. The goal was Gulczynski's second of the season and the assist was Booth's third.
Later, Xochi Hunter inbounded the ball to Katie Perry, who weaved through the defense and fed Fresno native Morgan Darling. The sophomore turned and found Booth, who split two Bulldog defenders, and the senior from Concord easily slipped her shot past the Fresno State goalkeeper in the 31st minute to post her team-leading fifth goal of 2014.
The Bulldogs cut their deficit in half when Miranda Rudolph sent what appeared to be an assuming boot toward the goal in the 50th minute. The ball, however, took a high bounce and the oncoming Melanie Vaughn could not prevent it from tickling the twine.
Fresno State became energized with the goal, but not four minutes later, SDSU got the goal back when Hannah Keane knocked in her second of the season. Haley Locker attempted to make a run at the goal, but misplayed the ball and tapped it back to Jen Rupey. From the right-hand sideline, the sophomore sent in a cross to the far post where Keane headed the ball into the nearside of the net. The assist was Rupey's first of her career.
In the 67th minute, Fresno State's Carly Bracken sent a cross into the box and the ball slipped through Vaughn's hands and into the net. All of a sudden, the home side was again within one of tying the Aztecs.
San Diego State successfully fended off Fresno State the rest of the way and received an insurance goal from Locker in the 85th minute when she was the receiving end of an Aliyah Utush pass. The sliding goal from nearly seven yards out was the senior's first of the campaign.
SDSU outshot Fresno State by 12 (17-5) and enjoyed a 10-3 edge in shots on goal. The Aztecs also attempted 10 corner kicks, including six in the second half. The Bulldogs' only corner kick, meanwhile, came in the ninth minute of the contest.
San Diego State returns to action on Friday, Oct. 3, when it plays host to Colorado College, a team that finished in second place and earned the same amount of first-place votes (5) as the Aztecs did in the MW preseason coaches' poll. First tap is set for 7 p.m. PT and the game will stream live online via the Mountain West Network. Admission to the game is free.