Feb. 28, 2015
EUGENE, Ore. - Junior Sophie Koubek recorded a hat trick with three goals and senior Christina Ricciardulli scored both the tying goal late in regulation and go-ahead goal in the first overtime period, lifting the San Diego State women's lacrosse team to an road victory over Oregon, 8-7, on Saturday afternoon.
The contest was the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) opener for both teams, as the Aztecs never led until Ricciardulli took a pass from the left side and scored going toward the middle with 43 seconds left in the first overtime period. Sophomore goalkeeper Katrina Reeves sealed the victory late in the second overtime period with a save on Hayley Milner's free-position shot with 12 seconds remaining.
"It was an emotional rollercoaster, but we found a way to win," head coach Kylee White said. "Composure was the theme for today. We believed the entire time that this was our game to win. Internally, we felt we were going to win."
SDSU (1-2, 1-0 MPSF) has won two of its last three meetings against Oregon, and has won six of its last eight games in the month of February. The Aztecs were also victorious for the first time in its last nine games when trailing at halftime, and snapped a three-game skid in one-goal games.
Koubek racked up three draw controls to go with her three goals, Ricciardulli scooped up five groundballs and had a team-high two caused turnovers, while Reeves finished with 10 saves and four groundballs.
It was a tale of two halves on Saturday, as San Diego State had the edge in draw controls after intermission, 8-6, and outshot the Ducks in the second half and overtime, 13-12.
Oregon (2-1, 0-1) started fast to take the lead at halftime, 4-1, before Koubek scored consecutive goals in the second half to cut the Aztecs' deficit to one with 21:35 remaining. When the Ducks built another three-point lead later in the second half, 7-4, San Diego State rallied once again.
Senior attack Michaela Jarvis and Koubek scored back-to-back unassisted goals, and Ricciardulli's score on a free-position shot knotted the score, 7-7, with 7:28 left to play in regulation. Ricciardulli wasn't done from there, as the senior midfielder came through in overtime when the Aztecs needed it most.
"It's what you would expect from a senior captain at the end of the game," White said. "We definitely needed this win to gain some confidence.
"We're not satisfied. We know we have a lot of work left to do, and we're starting to build momentum in the right direction."
SDSU heads to Fresno, Calif., for two games next weekend, as the Aztecs take on Campbell on Friday, March 6, before resuming MPSF against Fresno State on Sunday, March 8.