SDSU WOMEN'S SOCCER EARNS COMEBACK WIN OVER UTAH STATE 2-1

The Aztecs have now won four straight matches and eight of their last nine

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo courtesy goaztecs.com

October 8, 2023 (San Diego) - San Diego State women’s soccer earned a 2-1 comeback win over Utah State on Sunday afternoon at the SDSU Sports Deck. After conceding the first goal of the match to start the second half, Emma Gaines-Ramos and Denise Castro scored minutes apart to earn SDSU their fifth conference win of the season.

Both the Aztecs (10-2-2, 5-0-1 MW) and Aggies (7-7-1, 4-2-0 MW) battled the heat in the opening minutes before settling into the match. Castro forced a save out of the Aggies keeper in the fourth minute with the first shot of the match, before SDSU keeper Alexa Madueno was called into action nine minutes later and kept the match scoreless with a save of her own and things stayed knotted up at 0-0. Both teams would find chances hard to come by to end the first half and the match remained 0-0 heading into the halftime break.



After the halftime break space opened up on both sides of the pitch almost immediately. Just 24 seconds into the second half Utah State broke the deadlock when Tess Werts’ shot from just outside the box deflected off an Aztec defender and into the back of the net to give the Aggies the lead. Utah State would almost double their lead 10 minutes later but Alexa Madueno made back-to-back diving stops to keep the Aztecs down just the one goal.

In the 63rd minute the Aztecs leveled the match. Castro was played through on goal but had her shot blocked. However, the ball bounced straight across the box to an on-rushing Gaines-Ramos who shot the ball directly off the bounce into the back of the net to tie the match at 1-1.

After scoring the equalizer the Aztecs went right back to work looking for a game winning goal. They got it just eight minutes later in the 71st minute. After the Aggies cleared the ball away from their goal the ball fell to graduate transfer Kali Trevithick. The Anchorage, Alaska native dribbled into the space given to her and then played Castro through on goal. Castro then took two touches and then fired the ball into the bottom left corner of the net to give SDSU a 2-1 advantage with just under 20 minutes to go.

The Aztecs would see out the remaining time on the clock without allowing a clear opportunity for Utah State to find an equalizer, and SDSU would finish their four-match homestand with a fourth win in a row.

Offensively for the Aztecs Castro led the way with five shots, while Madueno made five saves in net for SDSU.

Up Next: The Aztecs hit the road for the second time in conference play on Thursday when they take on UNLV in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

 

Game Notes:

• The Aztecs tallied their 10th win of the season on Sunday, marking the first time the team has earned double-digits wins in a season since 2019 when SDSU finished 10-9-1 and won the Mountain West regular season championship.
• SDSU’s 10-2-2 start to the 2023 season is their best start since 2014 when they started 11-2-1.
• With her goal in the 71st minute Denise Castro now has seven goals on the season and 22 in her career. Those 22 career goals puts her in a tie for eighth all-time at SDSU.

Box