San Diego State women’s soccer battled to a 1-1 draw with Colorado College on Friday night at the SDSU Sports Deck.
The game went into double overtime, but both SDSU (5-9-2, 3-3-2 MW) and Colorado College (8-5-1, 4-3-1 MW) never backed down during 110 minutes of play.
The Aztecs scored their only goal within the first five minutes of the game, after sophomore midfielder/forward Chloe Frisch shot the ball in from six yards out.
Frisch said getting off the a hot start was key for the Aztecs.
“One of our mottos this season is ‘the first 15 minutes’ which is why we came out giving it everything we had,” she said. “We want to play hard early so that we can set the tone for the rest of the game which is exactly what we did.”
The Tigers scored their goal from two yards out in the 13th minute by senior midfielder Kelli Sullivan, after an assist from freshman forward Jacqui Hand.
SDSU head coach Mike Friesen said he liked the aggression the team showed throughout the game but especially in overtime.
“Having that grit is a successful trait in our program that has been missing during certain moments this year,” Friesen said. “Part of that is being such a young team, but tonight we were able to grow and build for not just next week but even next year and beyond.”
Friesen was pleased with the effort of the team and how they got the early goal, but also felt there were several negatives throughout the game.
“Colorado’s scoring goal was the softest goal I have ever seen in my years of coaching,” Friesen said. “There is no way a goal like that should ever go in.”
The Tigers outshot SDSU 15-14, with both teams having equal opportunities but neither capitalizing on their chances.
SDSU sophomore defender Sarah Broacha played all 110 minutes of the game and ended with two shot attempts on goal.
In the 69th minute, Broacha hustled across the field with the ball and was just shy of scoring a goal the Aztecs needed to take the lead.
“We did a lot of things right but we just could not get the ball into the net even though we had a good amount of opportunities,” Broacha said.
Broacha said going into double overtime and playing for a total of 110 minutes is never easy.
“We kept pushing one another to keep going and keep running even though our legs were slowly giving out,” she said.
The Aztecs are back in action Sunday against Air Force (2-6-6, 1-4-3 MW) at the SDSU Sports Deck.
Friesen is confident with the team going into these final regular season games.
“We just need to play more simple,” Friesen said. “Once we settle down and pass the ball like the way we know how, we will be a better team as a whole.”
