By Anthony Lucido — Reporter
Blue skies, a slight breeze and fans cheering in the stands. It’s a beautiful day for a final game, except for the Spartans that is.
San Jose State women’s soccer (2-7-1) lost its final game of the season 3-0 against Fresno State (6-3-1).
A lot was on the line Saturday for both teams who were trying to continue their two-game win streaks.
The Spartans hoped to end an underwhelming season with a win, while the Bulldogs tried to end their season at home on a high note.
The first half started with Fresno State hounding SJSU by playing aggressively and keeping the ball in Spartan territory.
The Bulldogs attempted several shots early on, however, the Spartans’ junior goalkeeper Zoe Aguirre blanked their relentless attack.
In the 37th minute, Fresno State sophomore midfielder Kylie Lucero sent the ball high into the air headed towards redshirt freshman midfielder Katie Dohnel.
Dohnel surprised Aguirre with an unexpected header that broke the tie and put the Bulldogs ahead 1-0.
Spartan freshman defender Bianca Aikens looked for the equalizer but sent the shot over the net.
The action moved back to SJSU’s side of the field with the ball finding its way to Lucero.
Lucero made her presence felt again by holding Aguirre’s attention and passing the ball to junior midfielder Lorena Montanes who buried the Bulldogs’ second goal.
Fresno State led SJSU 2-0 for the first half of the game.
The intensity rose even further in the second half of the game with some hard contact being made.
There was pushing, tripping and sliding with even a time out being called in the 64th minute after Bulldogs’ redshirt senior defender Kayla King got injured after getting flipped over.
Not long after in the 65th minute, Aguirre collided with two other players and landed on the ground with the back of her head.
Aguirre laid on the ground and clenched her head for some time but remained in the game.
To make matters worse, Fresno State’s senior forward Ele Avery sniped the ball like a speeding bullet straight into the net making it 3-0 in the 69th minute.
Despite the scoreboard, SJSU continued playing hard and with only a minute remaining the Spartans were able to snag a goal in the 89th minute thanks to senior defender Karlee Pottorff saving them from a shutout.
Despite an unsuccessful season, the Spartans can only move forward, learn, and improve in preparation for next season
Follow Anthony on Twitter @Lucido98
