SF State’s women’s soccer team suffered a crushing 1-0 double-overtime loss Friday at Cox Stadium to Cal State Los Angeles.
It was an uncharacteristically slow and sluggish start to the game for the Gators, who only managed to get two shots on goal in what was a quiet first half.
“We are usually a high pressure team and that’s what we are known for,” said freshman goalie Arianna Wesley. “We came out a little sluggish. I couldn’t tell you why, we are usually right on our toes all game.”
The Gators first shot on goal didn’t come until late in the 20th minute.
“I think we were both playing a little bit hesitant at first, focusing a little bit more on defense,” said head coach Tracy Hamm. “In the second half, we were able to run at them and play a little bit more higher pressure and take our chances going forward.”
The Gators were able to dominate possession for the rest of regulation, with most of the action taking place on the Golden Eagles side of the field. Everyone on the Gators sideline was on their feet cheering on in the second half.
“It’s huge when the bench is loud like that,” said Gator defender Paige Yeider. “It really pumps us players up and it just shows that every person on this team is super committed.”
The energy from the bench wasn’t enough to get the Gators a goal, however, causing the game to go into extra time for the fourth time this year. “
We never want to go into overtime,” Yeider said. “We’ve been to a ton of extra-time games this year, so in that second half we were really trying to avoid it by going pretty hard at them with a sense of urgency.”
In the extra frame, the Golden Eagles did not allow many more chances and ultimately were able to get the winning goal off a free kick late in the 104th minute. The loss marks a five game streak of winless games for the Gators. While it caused a dent to their playoff chances, the players and coaches said they know the season is not over
“I think we’re still in the running to make playoffs. We just need to have success in the next games and get some wins,” Hamm said. “I still have a lot of hope; four games is a lot, a lot of points up on the board.”
The Gators hope to start that playoff push on Sunday at Cox Stadium against Cal State Dominguez Hills.
