SAN DIEGO—San Diego State lacrosse fell to No.13 USC in their 2021 season opener at Aztec Lacrosse Field Saturday.
The Aztecs' (0-1) scoring was led by senior Lexi Tan who scored two goals on four shots while adding a caused turnover and two ground balls. Also aiding in SDSU's scoring were seniors Emily Resnick and Taylor Sullivan, each adding one point to the scoreboard, and junior Cailin Young, who added a goal, two ground balls and a caused turnover to her stat line. Senior captain Bailey Brown drew seven draw controls for the Aztecs along with an assist and a ground ball while sophomore Camdyn O'Donnell assisted on two of the Aztecs' goals.
The Women of Troy saw both Sophia Donovan and Ella Heaney score four goals apiece while Maddie McDaniel grabbed 15 of USC's 20 draw controls.
SDSU's defensive attack was led by freshmen Annie Jubb and Katelyn Murphy, each collecting a ground ball. Senior netminder Katy Sharretts grabbed 10 saves and three ground balls.
Tan started the day's scoring efforts with a goal in the game's first offensive drive. USC quickly responded on the other end of the field with a goal from Izzy McMahon assisted by Kelsey Huff.
The two programs went back and forth throughout the first half, with the Aztecs leading the Women of Troy 4-2 with 19:09 left to play and USC responding with three straight scores to move the scoreboard to 5-4. Young responded with a goal assisted by O'Donnell with 6:42 left to play in the half, which led to a USC 10-0 run through 17:26 left in the second half. Junior Arielle Shahrabani added the Aztecs' last score with 15:31 left to play in the game, assisted by Brown.
THE QUOTE
"Our efforts in the first half are what I am excited about to move forward with for the rest of the season," noted head coach Kylee White. "I am going to keep focusing on that [success] and work on how our team can bring that energy for two periods of play."
UP NEXT
The Aztecs have just six days before they welcome another Pac-12 opponent to the Mesa. SDSU hosts the University of Oregon for a game under the lights Friday, Feb. 19. The opening draw is set for 6 p.m.