SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State women's soccer team plays at UNLV on Saturday evening and with a win can eliminate at least one team, UNLV, and possibly a second, Fresno State, from the race for the West Division crown of the Mountain West.
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San Diego State (6-1-0) at UNLV (4-2-1)
Saturday, April 3 | 7 p.m. (PT) | Peter Johann Memorial Field | Las Vegas, Nev.
Aztec Team Notes
Anna Toohey (Jr., F, Winston-Salem, N.C.) was named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week for the week ending on March 28. In a pair of home victories, 2-1 over Fresno State and 3-0 over San Jose State, Toohey produced seven shots, put all on frame, scored two goals, the game winner in each contest, and added an assist. It is her first MW Player of the Week honor and the first for an Aztecs this season.
San Diego State continues to reign at the top of the West Division table with its 6-1-0 record after wins last week on the Sports Deck against Fresno State and San Jose State by scores of 2-1 and 3-0, respectively.
San Diego State's 6-1-0 start is its best since a 7-0-0 run to open the 2012 season (also: the Aztecs started the 1996 &1998 seasons 6-1-0). The 2012 team finished the season 21-2-1 and reached the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament.
With three games left in the regular season, four of the six teams in the West Division are still in the running to participate in the conference's championship match. The Aztecs control their own destiny and with two wins will wrap up the division's top spot. With one win, SDSU eliminates Fresno State. A San Diego State win at UNLV will eliminate the Rebels and a win at Boise State eliminates the Broncos.
If the two teams who finish at the tip of each division have the same record, there are three tie breaking scenarios to determine which will host the Mountain West championship game:
1. Comparison of goal differentials within divisional matches.
2. Comparison of goals scored within divisional matches.
3. Comparison of the win-loss records against other divisional opponents in descending order beginning at the top of the standings.
In the now 33 seasons of Aztec women's soccer, San Diego State has started a season with at least six wins in its first seven games five times. In 1996, 1998, 1999 and now 2021 the program opened the campaign 6-1 and in 2012 the Aztecs got off to a 7-0 start. On all the previous years the team has at least six wins in its first seven games, except in 1996, SDSU earned all or part of its conference championship and advanced to the NCAA tournament.
Since the 2021Spring schedule consists of only Mountain West contests, the Aztecs 6-1-0 record is an impressive start to league play. In the now 22 years of the Mountain West, San Diego State has opened conference play with at least six wins in its first seven games four times, including in 2012, when the side was 7-0-0 to start league play. The three years in which SDSU has had six wins in its first seven MW games are 2013, 2015 and now 2021.
After a week in which is outscored its opponents 5-1, San Diego State is now No. 9 in the nation in points per game (7.71), No. 10 in scoring offense (2.71 goals per game), and No. 11 in shots per game (17.43). In addition, the team is putting 8.43 shots on frame per game, which is No. 13 in the nation. SDSU either leads or ranks second in the Mountain West in each of those categories.
The Aztecs rank No. 17 in the nation and lead the Mountain West with an average of 2.29 assists per game. Its 16 total assists are No. 1 in the league and No. 53 in the nation.
SDSU leads the Mountain West in total goals (19) and total points (54) which rank No. 54 & No. 55 in the nation, respectively.
San Diego State's 19 goals through its first seven games are the most since the 1999 team scored 18 times in its first seven outings. The most goals in an Aztec team's first seven games came in the program's inaugural season of 1989 when that team totaled 22 goals in its first seven games and the 1996 iteration of the Aztecs scored 21 goals in its first seven contests.
Aztec Player Notes
Anna Toohey (Jr., F, Winston-Salem, N.C.) has a goal in each of the last three games, all game winners, and an assist. In the same stretch, she has attempted nine shots and put all nine on frame. She has earned a starting assignment in each of the last six games. Toohey is the reigning Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week and leads the team in points (10), game winners (3), is tied for the lead with four goals and is second in assists (2), shots (13) and shots on goal (12). Her three game winners rank No. 14 in the nation entering this week.
Chloe Frisch (Sr., MF, Solana Beach, Calif.) is pacing the side with 31 shots and 15 shots on goal, and is tied with Toohey for the team lead in goals (4). Nationally, her shots per game (4.43) and shots on goal per game (2.14) rank No. 13 & No. 23, respectively. Frisch had the game winner at San Jose State (March 12).
With her assist on the Jessica Sanders (So., D, San Carlos, Calif.) goal vs. Boise State (March 7), Frisch moved into a tie for eighth on the program's career assist list. Frisch has 16 career assists, on par with Erika Sutton (2005-06) and Hannah Keane (2011-14), and enters the weekend one assist from equaling Kelly Grogg (1996-98) for seventh place with 17.
Rachelle Elve (So., F, Huntington Beach, Calif.) had the first hat trick of her college career in a 6-1 dismantling of San Jose State (March 12). It was the 10th hat trick in program history and the first since Aliyah Utush had one against New Mexico on Nov. 4, 2017. Elve was the team's top goal scorer last season with seven strikes. In addition to her three goals, Elve has one assist, and her seven points are tied for third on the team. Her 11 total shots and six shots on goal are both third most on the squad.
Laura Fuentes (Jr., MF, Newark, Calif.) has three assists, which is tied for the team lead and tied for second in the Mountain West. She is tied for third on the team in points (7), is fourth with two goals, and fifth in shots (11). Her first goal came on a PK and was the game winner against Boise State (March 7).
Tied for the team lead in assists (3), Emma Gaines-Ramos (Fr., F, San Diego, Calif.) is tied for third on the side with 11 shots and fourth with five shots on goal. Her assists came in the victories against SJSU (March 12 & March 28) and on the game-winner vs. UNLV (March 20).
Phoebe Leitch (Sr., D/MF, Forest Row, England) has a goal and an assist. She has produced six shots, putting four on goal.
The goals from Jordan Girman (Sr., D, Cotati, Calif.) and Claire Watkins (So., D, San Diego, Calif.), were the first of each player's college careers. Girman's strike came in the San Jose State rout (March 12) and Watkins' was the game winner in the season opener against Nevada (March 5). In addition, Watkins had an assist on the game winner against San Jose State (March 28).
On two shots, Jessica Sanders (So., D, San Carlos, Calif.) has one goal, in the Boise State 3-1 victory. It was the first goal of her college career.
On two shots, Kiera Utush (So., D, San Carlos, Calif.) has one goal, in the victory over San Jose State (March 28). It came off a set piece from outside the top of the 18 from the left side.
In addition to Fuentes & Gaines-Ramos' three assists, Veronica Avalos (Sr., D, San Diego, Calif.), Daniela Filipovic (Jr., D, Laguna Hills, Calif.), Taylor Moorehead (Jr., F, Valencia, Calif.), and Malia Kaleiohi (Jr., MF/F, San Diego, Calif.) have one assists each. For Avalos and Filipovic, it was each of their first points as a college player. Kaleiohi doubled her career-point total with her assist and for Moorehead it was the third assist of her Aztec career.
Keeper Alexa Madueno (Fr., GK, Woodland, Calif.) has played every minute (630:00) this season. She has surrendered seven goals (1.00 GAA) and has made 21 saves (.750 save percentage). Three times she has stopped a season-high four shots. She earned her first collegiate clean sheet vs. UNLV (March 20) and picked up her second vs. San Jose State (March 28). Her record for the season and her career is 6-1-0.
-SDSU-
Aztecs Set To Face UNLV Saturday in Las Vegas
