Matadors Fall to Long Beach State 1-0 in the Big West Tournament

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NORTHRIDGE, CA---

A goal in the 13th minute of play proved to be the difference in CSUN Women's Soccer's 1-0 loss to Long Beach State in the semifinals of the Big West Conference Tournament on Thursday evening at George Allen Field. Junior goalkeeper Jovani McCaskill recorded a career-high 12 saves in defeat for the Matadors. Senior Camille Watson led the team in shots with three while fellow seniors Kourtney Kutscher, Sylvia Trinh and Taylor Hobson all had a shot apiece.

The Matadors came out quickly in the early moments of the match, earning a corner kick in the second minute. Shortly thereafter, Watson delivered a shot from the top of the box but Ashton McKeown made a diving save going to her left.

Long Beach State would turn the tables by earning a series of scoring opportunities to take control of the contest. Tori Bolden forced McCaskill to make a save in the fourth minute and Alyssa Alvarez headed a shot on frame moments later.

The 49ers finally broke through in the 13th minute to take the lead. Following a CSUN foul, Jessica Vincent delivered an entry pass to Ashley Gonzales who sent a shot from inside the box to the left of McCaskill and into the net.

CSUN was held to three shots in the opening period while Long Beach State earned eight shots. Despite the low shot output for the Matadors, all three attempts reached McKeown at the net. Watson recorded the last attempt of the half in the 34th minute that McKeown stopped cleanly.

Trailing by a goal, McCaskill would do her best to keep CSUN within reach throughout the second half. McCaskill stopped shots off the feet of Chloe Froment and three shots from Gonzales including a save in the 52nd minute.

Long Beach State continued to press the Matadors looking to put the game out of reach. Following a corner kick, the team posted back-to-back shots on McCaskill. In the 69th minute, Rocio Rodriguez fired a shot from the box toward the top of the goal but McCaskill reacted quickly and punched the ball over the crossbar.

Just two minutes later, Mimi Rangel also sent a shot that appeared to be heading into the net, however, McCaskill would make another athletic save. The Matador goalkeeper again deflected the shot over the crossbar and out of bounds.

Looking for the equalizer, CSUN earned three shots in the second period. In the 50th minute, Cynthia Sanchez took the ball down the left wing and crossed the ball to a streaking Trinh. With room inside the box, Trinh sent a shot just wide left.

The Matadors' last look of the night came late in regulation. Moving the ball up the field, Watson delivered a shot from the right wing but her attempt went high of the netting.

Thursday's match represented the final game for CSUN's nine-member senior class. Nicole Thompson, Briana Geffre, Krystal Kutscher, Kourtney Kutscher, Watson, Hobson and Trinh all started in their final match while Breanna McCallum played in a reserve role. Appearing in her 80th career match, Hobson tied a school record for the most games played.

Despite the loss in the tournament, the Matadors set a host of records during the 2016 season. The team won its first regular season Big West title in program history and posted its best conference record with a 6-1-1 mark. As a defense, the Matadors set school records in season shutouts (15), consecutive shutouts (6) and consecutive conference shutouts (6).

Individually, McCaskill enjoyed a record-breaking season as well as she recorded the most shutouts in a single season in program history with 14. With 21 career clean sheets, McCakill will have an opportunity to break Cynthia Jacobo's school record of 27 shutouts next season.

Matadors Fall to Long Beach State 1-0 in the Big West Tournament

Team Stats

Camille Watson

Kourtney Kutscher

Sylvia Trinh

Taylor Hobson

Players Mentioned

Briana Geffre

Taylor Hobson

Kourtney Kutscher

Krystal Kutscher

Breanna McCallum

Jovani McCaskill

Cynthia Sanchez

Nicole Thompson

Sylvia Trinh

Camille Watson