By Soren Stanton – Spear Reporter | Peterman celebrates her second goal with teammates to put the Spartans up 2-1. (Photo by Cesar Maya – Spear Reporter)
San Jose State women’s soccer drew 2-2 against California State University, Fullerton at home Thursday night, with the Spartans capturing their first point of the season.
The Spartans came into the game 0-0-3, looking to score their first goal of the year.
“We went for goal and were hungry to attack and finally finished, ”SJSU head coach Sonia Curvelo said. “We’ve been waiting for that first goal of the season and happy we got it today.”
Freshman forward Abigail Peterman stepped up for SJSU, scoring 2 goals in the span of five minutes before halftime.
“It feels really good that I was able to put two in the back of the net because it broke our non-scoring streak,” Peterman said.
It was a historic night for Peterman, as the last time an SJSU freshman woman scored twice in a game dates back to October 2010.
In the 36th minute, the Spartans kept constant pressure on the Titans while trailing. Junior forward Indigo Sims forced a turnover and was subsequently fouled outside the penalty box, leading to a Spartan free kick.
The free kick was taken by junior defender Charlotte Memoly and bounced off Fullerton freshman goalkeeper Riley Jolls that landed in front of Peterman, who smashed the ball into the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1.
“We work a lot on our set pieces and my mentality is to get in the box, be hungry, look to score,” Peterman said.
While not starting the game, Peterman came on at the 29th minute along with four other players. Curvelo said this is where the game changed for them.
“When I did those substitutions in the first half, that changed everything and is what put us in the 2-1 situation,” Curvelo said. “I’m really happy with the impact of those players that came in and didn’t start the game.”
Another turnover from the Titans led to a corner kick for SJSU, with the ball bouncing in front of goal before landing at the feet of Peterman again.
She scored her second goal of the night to put the Spartans up 2-1.
Junior goalkeeper Paige Fry commented on the state of the team going into halftime after rallying back from a one-goal deficit.
“There was positive energy, but we still knew that there was still a job to be done. Forty-five minutes is a long time,” Fry said. “We were trying to balance keeping momentum and also asking what we can do to improve.”
The Spartan offense stalled in the second half and did not record a shot, while Fullerton kept up the offensive pressure by totaling 18 shots throughout the game.
Twenty minutes into the second half, a long free kick ended up in the SJSU box, where it was passed centrally and fell at the feet of CSUF senior midfielder Camryn Cruz for the equalizer.
Despite the two goals conceded, Fry totaled 6 saves, with the most notable being a diving stop late in the second half to keep the score tied.
With the excitement around the team because of its first points, Curvelo praised her team’s play while identifying ways to improve.
“We still have to be very composed and conservative when it comes to our defense,” Curvelo said. “I thought we managed it well and were still first to the ball and we didn’t let anything else happen from there.”
The Spartans will return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday against California State University, Northridge at Matador Soccer Field, Northridge, Calif.
