SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State women's soccer team hadn't come out on the winning end of a decision in six matches, but in its Mountain West home opener on Sunday at the SDSU Sports Deck, that all changed with a 2-0 victory over the Colorado State Rams.
The last time the Aztecs tasted victory before Sunday was on August 25 in a 1-0 defeat of LIU, also the last time they shut out an opponent.
Senior keeper Brooke Lisowski weathered the first 16 minutes in which the Rams attempted eight of their 10 shots on the day and all the shots they would put up in the first 45 minutes. Three of those eight reached Lisowski's line and she stopped each one on her way to her second clean sheet of the season.
After the opening third of the first period, the Aztecs began to take over. They controlled the play and at the 41:08 mark struck for the first goal of the game.
Dominique Tucker had a throw in on the left side of the field. She passed it to Malia Kaleiohi who took a touch to placed it onto the foot of a charging Chloe Frisch. Frisch, from 12 yards out on the left side, powered home a shot inside the far post for a 1-0 Aztec lead.
It was the first time San Diego scored first in a game in 357:46, dating back to its 1-0 advantage at Miami (Fla) on September 7. For Tucker, a sophomore defender, it was her first assist and point as a collegian. Junior midfielder Kaleiohi picked up her first assist of the campaign and for Frisch it was her second goal on the year. It marked just the third time this season that SDSU scored first and the second time it took a lead into the intermission.
The fans waited just over seven second-half minutes for San Diego State to double its lead.
Laura Fuentes, the reigning Newcomer of the Year in the Mountain West, picked up a ball in the team's defensive end and played it on the Frisch at the midfield line. Frisch, a junior mid, drove down the left side and placed a perfect pass into the box which freshman forward Rachelle Elve ran onto. As with the first goal of the game, Elve beat the keeper low inside the far post to open her collegiate account. The Aztecs had a 2-0 lead in the 53rd minute
From that point on, SDSU (2-6-1, 1-1-0 MW) stymied the Rams, which managed just one shot in the final 37 minutes and were held shot less in the final 31 minutes.
Frisch led the SDSU attack with three shots, a goal and an assist. Darcy Weiser, Taylor Moorehead and Jordan Girman produced a pair of shots each while Ariana Robles, Elve, and Veronica Avalos took a shot a piece. Lisowski stopped each of the three shots which reached her line to earn her second win of the season.
Colorado State (6-3-1, 1-1-0 MW) got a game-high five shots from Kristen Noonan, who had two of her team's three shots on goal. Gabi McDonald (6-3-1, 1-1-0 MW) made four saves, but gave up two goals in the loss.
THE NOTE
With Frisch's goal at the 41:08 mark, the Aztecs enjoyed a lead for the first time in 317:25 dating back Miami (Fla)'s tying goal at the 83:43 mark.
THE QUOTE(S)
"For us to get the first goal today was huge because it allowed us to open them up even more," head coach Mike Freisen said. "They had to take chances and come forward which allowed us to get the second goal. We wanted to play the first 15 minutes today like we played the last 15 at Wyoming and then build on that, keep going and have that urgency to go get goals.
"(Senior striker) Darcy (Weiser) is massive for us. Her first couple of years she struggled with confidence issues and midway through last season there was a change that happened for her and she really came on strong for us. She had a fantastic spring, so it has been disappointing not to have her on the field until last Friday at Wyoming. Just her presence on the field has made other player better and that's a sign of leadership and a big-time player. I'm excited for her because she brings something we didn't have and she will help teach some of our younger players like Rachelle (Elve) and Taylor (Moorehead), who took off this weekend as well.
"Getting a result after how hard we have worked is massive. We were disappointed on Friday (a 3-2 loss at Wyoming) to dominate the game and not come away with a victory. We created a lot of quality changes and were really good, but we made a couple of mistakes which really cost us. But at the same time there was something that clicked after Wyoming's third goal, a mind shift happened, and we responded with a couple of goals and I thought we would get the equalizer in the final minute.
"So, it was disappointing up there, but we came out here today and got a win against what I consider to be a better team. We got a shutout, were dangerous, created chances, scored goals and all those things are going to be huge for us as we move forward."
NEXT UP
The Aztecs are back in action next Friday at 7 p.m. when they host the UNLV Rebels on the Sports Deck. The first 150 fans through the turnstiles will receive a free SDSU beach towel.
Women’s Soccer Shuts Out Colorado State, 2-0
