San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913

The Daily Aztec

San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913

The Daily Aztec




San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913

The Daily Aztec

WOMEN’S SOCCER: Aztecs win physical battle against 49ers

Nicholas Santiago / Staff Photographer

It took a while to heat up, but once it did, there were some flaring tempers.

In its Sunday afternoon game, the San Diego State women’s soccer team steered clear of wild activity from the visiting bench of CSU Long Beach.

SDSU hosted a very physical game that had the crowd roaring with every call and every collision. One fan in the crowd even yelled out, “This is soccer, not football!”

No one seemed more upset than visiting 49ers’ head coach Mauricio Ingrassia, who received a yellow card for his antics on the sideline with a little more than 10 minutes left.
“He got fired up,” Aztec head coach Mike Friesen said. “It really created a different dynamic in the game; everything took a big turn emotionally.”

SDSU players kept their cool however, showing confidence on the field and winning the game 2-1.

“It was definitely an intense game,” freshman forward Hillary Harvey said. “It was a battle, but we knew it was going to be a battle. During the game I just tried to stay focused.”

Harvey was very successful in keeping her cool. After 37 minutes, 55 seconds of play, she was able to get a clear shot five feet out, with an assist from junior midfielder Michaela DeJesus. Harvey’s goal was the first of the game, and her first as an Aztec.

“It felt amazing,” Harvey said. “It was fun, my energy was up. Hopefully I can continue the rest of the season and score as much as I can.”

Chances for goals were extremely limited in the first half. Harvey’s goal was the only score going into halftime, with only three shot attempts from either side.

The second half brought the heat. SDSU hit the field hungry, with three shot attempts in the first 10 minutes. Junior midfielder Cat Walker brought the Aztecs to a 2-0 lead in the 71st minute. After a pass from the right side by freshman midfielder Marisa Fraticelli, Walker was able to drive it into the upper left corner of the net.

It was almost immediately met by a goal from CSULB, taking the score to 2-1 with 17 minutes on the clock. The last minutes of the game seemed to bounce back from side to side, including two clear chances for Long Beach to score for the tie.

“They were fired up,” Friesen said. “They did a good job of keeping us on our heels late in the game, but we kept the ball in the corner and did a nice job in slowing the game down.”
With 10 minutes on the clock, it was a rush to seal the score for either side.

“At the end I was just thinking “Come on everyone, give it your all,” Harvey said. “We have a couple minutes left and we’ll be done.'”

SDSU held strong in the corner. Although being out-shot 13-11, the Aztecs were able to take the win. The win takes SDSU’s record for the year to 5-3-2, and brings the 49ers down to 4-4-0.

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San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913
WOMEN’S SOCCER: Aztecs win physical battle against 49ers