By Hugo Vera — Staff Writer
The San Jose State women’s soccer team (3-6-1) hosted the San Diego State Aztecs (3-4-2) on Friday evening on what proved to be a pivotal match-up for Mountain West conference play.
The first half was stalemate as most of the play was contained within the middle 50 yards of the pitch.
The majority of the game’s action was not even present until late in the second half when the Spartans ultimately allowed a literal last-minute goal that sealed their fate with a final score of 0-1.
Senior goalkeeper Paige Simoneau played every minute of the match but only yielded one save.
“It was just a mistake at the end and soccer is like that,” said head coach Lauren Hanson.
The SJSU home crowd grew noticeably vocal about the teams’ matched efforts as play became more physical.
Both teams maintained offensive pressure in the second half, as evidenced from efforts by senior forward Darriell Franklin.
With Spartan defense scrambling toward the center by the end of the match, the home goal box was left unattended which allowed for an 89th minute goal by SDSU midfielder Nikolina Musto.
Musto’s goal was unassisted.
The Aztecs secured a 1-0 win with no additional time needed.
“Our goal is still to win the Mountain West. We came close tonight and we played with heart with 17 shots on target,” added Hanson.
The match also entailed a personal and emotional agenda for many. Players wore warm up t-shirt reading “Julian Strong” in solidarity for Captain Becerra’s critically ill brother, Julian.
“It was extremely inspiring that we played for Julian tonight,” Franklin said.
“We played not only for him, but for all girls — especially those who don’t get to play in Division I. We had a bit of a defensive scramble but we clicked together as a team,” Franklin added.
“We had a lot of chances tonight, chances that were very close,” said Kristen Amarikwa.
“Going forward, we just have to move on and keep that same energy to protect our [goalkeeper] box,” Amarikwa concluded.
The Spartans host the New Mexico State Lobos on Sunday at the Spartan Soccer Complex.
Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
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