Sunday, October 26
San Luis Obispo, Calif.
12:00 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
1
at
1
Cal Poly
Photo by: Chuck Marvel
CSUN Earns Important Point in 1-1 Draw at Cal Poly
10/26/2025 2:15:00 PM | Women's Soccer
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.---CSUN Women's Soccer earned a hard-fought point at first-place Cal Poly in a 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon at Mustang Memorial Field. Paige Califf netted her third goal of the season as the Matadors led for 70-plus minutes in the match. However, Cal Poly found the equalizer late in the contest, securing a draw and a point for both teams.Â
With the result, CSUN is tied for second place in the Big West standings with UC Santa Barbara at 18 points each. However, the Matadors are just two points back of first-place Cal Poly with one match left to play next Thursday. A CSUN win next week, coupled with a UC Santa Barbara tie or loss would give the Matadors the first seed, a first-round bye and home field advantage for the conference tournament.Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
With the winner guaranteed to sit alone in first place in the Big West, the Matadors wasted little time jumping in front just 5:12 into the game. Cassidy Imperial-Pham set up the scoring play with a drive down the left field side of the field. A cross from Imperial-Pham would find a driving Califf who headed the ball forward into the net from eight yards to put the Matadors ahead 1-0.Â
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CSUN would lead for nearly the remainder of the contest. The Matadors' defense held the Mustangs to five shots in the first half with none reaching frame. Meanwhile, CSUN's Cailey Jackson forced a save from goalkeeper Shannon Porubski in the 29th minute of action. Jordyn Canister would miss wide late in the half as the score remained 1-0 after 45 back-and-forth minutes.Â
In the second half, Cal Poly would come out firing as it looked for the equalizer. The trio of Kiki Vostermans, Camryn Penn and Jessie Halladay each missed the net over the first five minutes of action while Matador goalkeeper Riley Liebsack had to fend off three corner kicks over a 90-second span beginning in the 51st minute. The Matadors appeared they would withstand the shooting barrage of the Mustangs until a free kick in the 78th minute set up the equalizer. On the free kick that was positioned just inside midfield, the ball was sent into the box where multiple players deflected. However, Izzy Matteson had the last touch, a right-footed tapper that hit the net and evened the game at 1-1. The final 10 minutes of play saw the Mustangs earn three corner kicks, but the Matador defense thwarted each chance to earn the draw.Â
NOTES OF THE GAME
"We knew this was going to be a tough game on the road, and we've been asking the team to focus on putting away our early chances we've been creating so we were happy with the goal in the first five minutes. Second half was a challenge to sustain their pressure and the team did the best they could. We're proud of their efforts and getting the draw on the road. We will regroup and be ready to go for our next game on Thursday."
UP NEXT
CSUN will play for the No. 1 seed in the 2025 Big West Championship next Thursday when the Matadors host Long Beach State at 7 p.m. Ghizal Hasan has the call on ESPN+.
#GoMatadors
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With the result, CSUN is tied for second place in the Big West standings with UC Santa Barbara at 18 points each. However, the Matadors are just two points back of first-place Cal Poly with one match left to play next Thursday. A CSUN win next week, coupled with a UC Santa Barbara tie or loss would give the Matadors the first seed, a first-round bye and home field advantage for the conference tournament.Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
With the winner guaranteed to sit alone in first place in the Big West, the Matadors wasted little time jumping in front just 5:12 into the game. Cassidy Imperial-Pham set up the scoring play with a drive down the left field side of the field. A cross from Imperial-Pham would find a driving Califf who headed the ball forward into the net from eight yards to put the Matadors ahead 1-0.Â
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MATADOR GOAL!
— CSUN Women's Soccer (@CSUNWSoccer) October 26, 2025
Paige Califf gives CSUN the early lead with a header after the cross from Cassidy Imperial-Pham in the 6th minute. #GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/SMNNBrsj3l
CSUN would lead for nearly the remainder of the contest. The Matadors' defense held the Mustangs to five shots in the first half with none reaching frame. Meanwhile, CSUN's Cailey Jackson forced a save from goalkeeper Shannon Porubski in the 29th minute of action. Jordyn Canister would miss wide late in the half as the score remained 1-0 after 45 back-and-forth minutes.Â
In the second half, Cal Poly would come out firing as it looked for the equalizer. The trio of Kiki Vostermans, Camryn Penn and Jessie Halladay each missed the net over the first five minutes of action while Matador goalkeeper Riley Liebsack had to fend off three corner kicks over a 90-second span beginning in the 51st minute. The Matadors appeared they would withstand the shooting barrage of the Mustangs until a free kick in the 78th minute set up the equalizer. On the free kick that was positioned just inside midfield, the ball was sent into the box where multiple players deflected. However, Izzy Matteson had the last touch, a right-footed tapper that hit the net and evened the game at 1-1. The final 10 minutes of play saw the Mustangs earn three corner kicks, but the Matador defense thwarted each chance to earn the draw.Â
NOTES OF THE GAME
- CSUN sits at 7-7-4 overall and 5-1-3 in Big West play while Cal Poly finishes the regular season at 8-2-9 overall and 6-2-2 in conference.Â
- Cal Poly finished with a 12-5 lead in shots but the Matadors led 2-1 in shots on goal.Â
- The Mustangs had a 9-2 edge in corner kicks.Â
- A total of 20 fouls were called with 14 whistled to Cal Poly and six to CSUN.Â
- Califf's three goals this season have all come in Big West play.Â
- Imperial-Pham's assist was her second of the year.Â
- Califf, Jackson, Siena Navarra, Sydney Lipkin, Yoshi Rubalcava and Alex Valente played the full 90 minutes.Â
"We knew this was going to be a tough game on the road, and we've been asking the team to focus on putting away our early chances we've been creating so we were happy with the goal in the first five minutes. Second half was a challenge to sustain their pressure and the team did the best they could. We're proud of their efforts and getting the draw on the road. We will regroup and be ready to go for our next game on Thursday."
UP NEXT
CSUN will play for the No. 1 seed in the 2025 Big West Championship next Thursday when the Matadors host Long Beach State at 7 p.m. Ghizal Hasan has the call on ESPN+.
#GoMatadors
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Players Mentioned
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