San Diego State women’s soccer lost to the University of San Diego by a score of 1-0 on Friday night at the SDSU Sports Deck.
The Aztecs appeared to have outplayed the Toreros Friday but lost because of a shot from USD midfielder and former Aztec Milan Moses, who managed to get a shot in that curled just inside the right post during the 77th minute.
Overall, SDSU did have plenty of opportunities. The team had 12 shots and six shots on goal – including two each from junior midfielder Malia Kaleiohi and senior defender Ariana Robles – while USD had seven shots, two of those were shots on goal.
Whether you decide to call this game the San Diego derby or a clasico, the Aztecs certainly came out with the intensity of a rivalry game, taking seven shots in the first half, three on goal, and holding the Toreros to three.
Kaleiohi believed that since her team was playing their crosstown rivals, there was a preparation for a close game.
“We always want to bring as much intensity as we can,” Kaleiohi said. “But since we’re both San Diego teams, they have shirts that say ‘beat state’ so we definitely went in prepared for a good battle.’’
The game was played just as aggressively as a rivalry match. The first half alone saw six fouls called between both teams, including five for USD – which featured a yellow card for USD freshman midfielder Eden Quiroz.
There were 14 fouls in the first half, and the second half having another eight.
The second half matched the first half’s intensity, with junior midfielder Chloe Frisch taking a shot that went just high, bounced off the top crossbar in the 54th minute, which was essentially the Aztecs’ closest chance to get on the scoreboard.
Head coach Mike Friesen felt that the Aztecs dealt with an issue that has faced them all season – struggling to convert the opportunities his team creates.
“It’s kind of the same story,” Friesen said. “We’ve had a lot of possession of the ball, we’ve created a ton of chances, we’re just struggling to score goals.
“We have to find a way to pass the ball in the goal, it’s that simple, I’d be a lot more concerned if we weren’t creating any chances, but on a night like tonight where we had the ball, we had a lot of opportunities.”
SDSU sophomore forward Laura Fuentes said once her team converts their shots, results will begin to look much different.
“We did good on the attack,” she said. “We got (12) shots off, we just need to finish them off and we’ll start finding success after that.”
The Aztec offense had plenty of opportunities while the defense held the USD offense in check for most of the night.
Aside from the late goal the team allowed, Friesen said he was pleased with the Aztecs’ defense.
“I thought they were stellar minus the one moment,” Friesen said. “Unfortunately in a year where you’re struggling to score goals, it’s like you have to be perfect, and we weren’t.”
