SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State women’s soccer team (8-3-2, 2-1-1 Pac-12) defeated Colorado State (3-9-2, 2-2-0 Pac-12) 3-1 on Sunday on a hat trick by Victoria Miller.
In the 62nd minute, Alexis Leath dribbled into the box and passed to KK Chowana-Bandhu, who redirected the ball to Miller. She fired into the left side of the goal to tie the game. Two minutes later, a CSU handball in the box set up a penalty kick. Miller took it and converted past a diving Huber to put the Aztecs on top 2-1. Three minutes afterwards, Karoline Lundstrom passed to Miller who shot the ball into the left side of the goal once again just before a diving Bridget Arnold could knock the ball away.
After rain in San Diego, the pitch was slippery in the first half and both teams struggled to find traction offensively. The Aztecs prevented Colorado State from getting off a shot in the first 45 minutes. SDSU took eight shots, but only two were on target, both saved by Addison Huber. Alexyz Nakamoto took the first one in the eighth minute and the second was by Alannah Gonzales in the 42nd minute.
Colorado State took their first shot of the match in the 51st minute, but Charlie Gerson blocked it for SDSU. Nakamoto had a good shot saved for the second time immediately afterwards. In the 57th minute, the Rams were awarded a penalty kick after a foul in the box. Avery Boulom converted to give CSU a 1-0 lead. Lily Boudet tried to tie things up a minute later, but her shot was saved.
The Rams’ Shadia Valenzuela was given a yellow card in the 63rd minute. Two minutes later, Kailey Carlen made her first save of the match on a shot by Skylar Alonso. Boudet took the Aztecs’ final shot on target in the 74th minute, but it was saved. The Aztecs were issued two yellow cards in the second half: one to Mia Hambro Svendsen in the 84th and the other to Kenny Moore in the 87th. Carlen held steady in goal against a late push by Colorado State, saving a shot by Valenzuela in the 85th minute and one by Breckyn Ferrell in the 86th to preserve the 3-1 victory.
The Aztecs finished the match with more shots (15-7), shots on goal (8-4), corner kicks (8-2), fouls (17-5) and time of possession (58%-42%). The Rams had more saves (5-3).
THE NOTE
Victoria Miller became the 12th different player in program history to score at least three goals in a game, logging the 13th hat trick by an Aztec. She is the first SDSU player to do so since the 2020-21 season, when Veronica Avalos had three goals at Nevada on April 21, and Rachelle Elve scored three times at San Jose State on March 12. Miller’s hat trick was the first by an Aztec at home since Aliyah Utush against New Mexico on November 4, 2017.
UP NEXT
The Aztecs have a break before resuming Pac-12 play at Washington State on Thursday, October 22, at 4 p.m. PT. All home matches on the SDSU Sports Deck have free admission, and all of the Aztecs’ Pac-12 matches are streamed on the Pac-12 YouTube channel.