Thursday, August 17
Northridge, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
vs
Portland
Photo by: Cassandra Elena Yra
CSUN Opens 28th Season of Women's Soccer This Week
8/16/2023 11:30:00 AM | Women's Soccer
FULL GAME NOTES
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Women's Soccer opens its 28th season on Thursday evening hosting Portland at 7 p.m. The week will conclude with a road test at UNLV on Sunday at noon.
Tickets for Thursday's home opener and other regular season matches this season are now available. Click here to purchase tickets.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Thursday's season opener will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Ghizal Hasan on the call while live stats can be found at GoMatadors.com/SidearmStats/wsoc. UNLV will provide live video and live stats for Sunday's game. All video and live stat links can be found at GoMatadors.com.
FREE KICKS
CSUN went 1-1 last week in exhibition play, falling 2-1 to California Baptist before bouncing back for a 3-1 win over Hope International.Â
Last Thursday, CSUN battled California Baptist to a scoreless tie for most of the match before CBU scored twice within a two-minute span beginning in the 67th minute.CSUN answered with a goal from Paige Califf in the 77th minute but missed a chance at tying the game when Yoshi Rubalcava missed a penalty kick. In goal, Hayden Mauldin recorded six saves.
Three different Matadors found the net in the victory over Hope International last Saturday. Kacie Garrity was credited with the first goal of the match in the opening minute before HIU notched the game at 1-1 in the 10th minute. Daisy Torres broke the tie, scoring via an assist from Califf in the 45th minute then CSUN put the game away with a late strike from Cassidy Imperial-Pham. Torres had two assists to go with her goal. A UNLV transfer, Riley Liebsack had one save in 90 minutes in goal.
ARTEAGA ENTERS PRO RANKS
Graduating forward Cindy Arteaga signed a professional soccer contract with Club Universidad Nacional Femenil in Mexico during the offseason. Arteaga had a banner senior season with CSUN last season, leading the team in goals with nine and points with 19. She received All-Big West First Team and All-West Region Third Team honors for the year.
SERIES HISTORY
Portland leads CSUN 2-1-1 in the all-time series but the teams have not played since the 2015 season. The teams last met on Sept. 13, 2015, in Portland with CSUN coming out on top 1-0 on a goal from Ariana Tran.
CSUN leads UNLV 5-3 in the all-time series with wins in four of its last five matches. The teams played last on Aug. 22, 2019, with CSUN picking up a 1-0 victory on Alexis White's goal.
SCOUTING PORTLAND
The Pilots are coming off a second-round NCAA Tournament appearance last season, finishing 12-5-4 overall. The team was picked to finish second in the WCC Preseason Coaches Poll with three players selected to the All-WCC Preseason Team in Bre Norris, Nedya Sawan and Cally Togiai. Norris collected 11 shutouts in goal to go with a 0.82 GAA last season while Sawan had five goals and two assists and Togiai had six goals and four assists. Head coach Michelle French has returned for her sixth season with Portland.
SCOUTING UNLV
The Rebels went 5-9-5 overall last season and in ninth place in the Mountain West. UNLV was selected to finish ninth again in the 2023 Preseason Coaches Poll. Savannah Nicols led the team in goals (3) and points (7) last season while returners Mimi Mendoza, Mallie Ramirez and Cadence Whitley had six points apiece. Head coach Jenny Ruiz-Williams, a former CSUN assistant coach, enters her third season leading the program.
#GoMatadors
Â
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Women's Soccer opens its 28th season on Thursday evening hosting Portland at 7 p.m. The week will conclude with a road test at UNLV on Sunday at noon.
Tickets for Thursday's home opener and other regular season matches this season are now available. Click here to purchase tickets.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Thursday's season opener will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Ghizal Hasan on the call while live stats can be found at GoMatadors.com/SidearmStats/wsoc. UNLV will provide live video and live stats for Sunday's game. All video and live stat links can be found at GoMatadors.com.
FREE KICKS
- CSUN returns 18 letterwinners this season along with two returning redshirts.
- The team also features 14 newcomers on the roster including nine true freshmen. Five transfers round out the new faces with three coming from Division I schools.
- CSUN was picked to finish 10th in the 2023 Big West Preseason Poll by the league's head coaches.
- Graduate student Ashley Cruz is the team's top returning point scorer from last season with six. Other top returners include sophomore Cassidy Imperial-Pham, who had five points, and graduate defender Kacie Garrity, who had five four points.
- Cruz has returned for her seventh season with the Matadors. In CSUN history, Cruz is the only student-athlete in any sport to be with a team for seven seasons. Previously, Cruz missed the 2017 and 2018 seasons with injury while she has lettered three seasons.
- A three-year letterwinner, Garrity has appeared in the most matches of any current CSUN player with 58. Garrity has registered nine career points with five assists and two goals while helping anchor the backline.
- Sophomore goalkeeper Hayden Mauldin was placed on the Big West All-Freshman Team last season. Mauldin accumulated 55 saves in 990 minutes to go with one shutout.
- Christine Johnson returns for her second season as CSUN head coach and third season overall.
CSUN went 1-1 last week in exhibition play, falling 2-1 to California Baptist before bouncing back for a 3-1 win over Hope International.Â
Last Thursday, CSUN battled California Baptist to a scoreless tie for most of the match before CBU scored twice within a two-minute span beginning in the 67th minute.CSUN answered with a goal from Paige Califf in the 77th minute but missed a chance at tying the game when Yoshi Rubalcava missed a penalty kick. In goal, Hayden Mauldin recorded six saves.
Three different Matadors found the net in the victory over Hope International last Saturday. Kacie Garrity was credited with the first goal of the match in the opening minute before HIU notched the game at 1-1 in the 10th minute. Daisy Torres broke the tie, scoring via an assist from Califf in the 45th minute then CSUN put the game away with a late strike from Cassidy Imperial-Pham. Torres had two assists to go with her goal. A UNLV transfer, Riley Liebsack had one save in 90 minutes in goal.
ARTEAGA ENTERS PRO RANKS
Graduating forward Cindy Arteaga signed a professional soccer contract with Club Universidad Nacional Femenil in Mexico during the offseason. Arteaga had a banner senior season with CSUN last season, leading the team in goals with nine and points with 19. She received All-Big West First Team and All-West Region Third Team honors for the year.
SERIES HISTORY
Portland leads CSUN 2-1-1 in the all-time series but the teams have not played since the 2015 season. The teams last met on Sept. 13, 2015, in Portland with CSUN coming out on top 1-0 on a goal from Ariana Tran.
CSUN leads UNLV 5-3 in the all-time series with wins in four of its last five matches. The teams played last on Aug. 22, 2019, with CSUN picking up a 1-0 victory on Alexis White's goal.
SCOUTING PORTLAND
The Pilots are coming off a second-round NCAA Tournament appearance last season, finishing 12-5-4 overall. The team was picked to finish second in the WCC Preseason Coaches Poll with three players selected to the All-WCC Preseason Team in Bre Norris, Nedya Sawan and Cally Togiai. Norris collected 11 shutouts in goal to go with a 0.82 GAA last season while Sawan had five goals and two assists and Togiai had six goals and four assists. Head coach Michelle French has returned for her sixth season with Portland.
SCOUTING UNLV
The Rebels went 5-9-5 overall last season and in ninth place in the Mountain West. UNLV was selected to finish ninth again in the 2023 Preseason Coaches Poll. Savannah Nicols led the team in goals (3) and points (7) last season while returners Mimi Mendoza, Mallie Ramirez and Cadence Whitley had six points apiece. Head coach Jenny Ruiz-Williams, a former CSUN assistant coach, enters her third season leading the program.
#GoMatadors
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