Thursday, September 25
Northridge, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
3-6-2, 1-0-1
1
vs
0
UC Irvine
4-3-4, 1-1-0
1
2
F
UC Irvine
0
0
0
CSUN
0
1
1
Photo by: Jayden Balbuena Valles
Imperial-Pham's Goal Lifts CSUN to 1-0 Win Over UC Irvine
9/25/2025 9:36:00 PM | Women's Soccer
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---Senior Cassidy Imperial-Pham netted her first goal of the season as CSUN Women's Soccer notched its first Big West victory in a 1-0 triumph over UC Irvine on Thursday at Matador Soccer Field. CSUN secured its second consecutive shutout of the conference season while senior Riley Liebsack posted four saves in registering her fourth clean sheet of the year. The Matadors also earned their first win over UC Irvine since the 2019 season.Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Matador defense would be tested early as the Anteaters racked up six shot attempts in the early minutes of the match. Liebsack made her only save of the first half in the 12th minute, stopping an attempt from Ariane Haysman Boaler. In the 29th minute, UCI earned a corner kick, leading to a Suus de Bakker header that struck the crossbar while the Anteaters would be called for an offside one minute later. Despite the UCI barrage, CSUN held firm and would generate scoring chances in the final moments of the first half as Keilani Claiborne had a shot blocked and Cailey Jackson shot just high of the net.Â
UCI had perhaps its best look at the net in the 59th minute when a free kick found Bakker at the far left post. Bakker sent a close range shot toward the goal, but Liebsack absorbed the point blank shot. Moments later in the 61st minute, CSUN finally broke through in the scoring column, taking advantage of a corner kick opportunity. Yoshi Rubalcava would set up the play with a well-executed corner kick that found Imperial-Pham, who headed the ball off the left post. Imperial-Pham quickly found the rebound and sent a second shot past the goal line to put CSUN ahead 1-0.Â
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The Anteaters frantically looked for the equalizer over the final 28-plus minutes, picking up five shot attempts, but the Matador defense protected the net each time. In front of the goal, Liebsack had two saves down the stretch to help keep the Matadors in front.Â
NOTES OF THE GAME
ACCORDING TO COACH GINA BREWER
"It starts with a good game plan, organized defense and the players sticking to what we're asking them to do -- being very coachable and working extremely hard to play a 90-minute performance. We've talked about players coming off the bench and being game changers. We've asked them to really impact the game in a positive way, and Cass [Imperial-Pham] did that today and has been doing that as of late. We're so proud of her effort. The whole team though worked hard defensively and attacking. We've asked them to really respond at home because I feel like we haven't played our best at home. Today, we finally showed what we're capable of at home."
UP NEXT
CSUN stays at home to take on UC Riverside on Sunday evening at Matador Soccer Field. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. with Ghizal Hasan on the call.Â
#GoMatadors
Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Matador defense would be tested early as the Anteaters racked up six shot attempts in the early minutes of the match. Liebsack made her only save of the first half in the 12th minute, stopping an attempt from Ariane Haysman Boaler. In the 29th minute, UCI earned a corner kick, leading to a Suus de Bakker header that struck the crossbar while the Anteaters would be called for an offside one minute later. Despite the UCI barrage, CSUN held firm and would generate scoring chances in the final moments of the first half as Keilani Claiborne had a shot blocked and Cailey Jackson shot just high of the net.Â
UCI had perhaps its best look at the net in the 59th minute when a free kick found Bakker at the far left post. Bakker sent a close range shot toward the goal, but Liebsack absorbed the point blank shot. Moments later in the 61st minute, CSUN finally broke through in the scoring column, taking advantage of a corner kick opportunity. Yoshi Rubalcava would set up the play with a well-executed corner kick that found Imperial-Pham, who headed the ball off the left post. Imperial-Pham quickly found the rebound and sent a second shot past the goal line to put CSUN ahead 1-0.Â
Â
GOOOOAAAALLL!
— CSUN Women's Soccer (@CSUNWSoccer) September 26, 2025
Cassidy Imperial-Pham puts CSUN on top in the 61st minute.#GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/RuUVIwN1XG
The Anteaters frantically looked for the equalizer over the final 28-plus minutes, picking up five shot attempts, but the Matador defense protected the net each time. In front of the goal, Liebsack had two saves down the stretch to help keep the Matadors in front.Â
NOTES OF THE GAME
- CSUN improves to 3-6-2 overall and 1-0-1 in Big West play while UC Irvine slips to 4-3-4 and 1-1-0.Â
- The Anteaters held a 16-8 edge in shots and a 4-2 advantage in shots on goal.Â
- CSUN led in corner kicks, 3-2.Â
- A total of 25 fouls were called with UCI whistled for 13 while CSUN had 12. Siena Navarra was shown a yellow card in the 66th minute.Â
- Imperial-Pham's goal was her fourth of her career as she played 63 minutes off the bench on Thursday.Â
- Claiborne, Jackson, Navarra, Rubalcava, Sami Kolin, Sydney Lipkin and Alex Valente all played the full 90 minutes.Â
- Liebsack's shutout was her seventh as a Matador and her 15th overall in her collegiate career.
ACCORDING TO COACH GINA BREWER
"It starts with a good game plan, organized defense and the players sticking to what we're asking them to do -- being very coachable and working extremely hard to play a 90-minute performance. We've talked about players coming off the bench and being game changers. We've asked them to really impact the game in a positive way, and Cass [Imperial-Pham] did that today and has been doing that as of late. We're so proud of her effort. The whole team though worked hard defensively and attacking. We've asked them to really respond at home because I feel like we haven't played our best at home. Today, we finally showed what we're capable of at home."
UP NEXT
CSUN stays at home to take on UC Riverside on Sunday evening at Matador Soccer Field. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. with Ghizal Hasan on the call.Â
#GoMatadors
Â
Team Stats
UCI
CSUN
Goals
0
1
Shots
16
8
Shots on Goal
4
2
Saves
1
4
Corners
2
3
Fouls
13
12
Scoring Plays
Cassidy Imperial-Pham (1)
Off CK, 18 heads into left post, 18 rebounds and kick past goal line
60:47
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
Shots
2
SOG
0
Goals
0
Assists
0
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
MF
/ Women's SoccerF/MF
/ Women's SoccerF
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's SoccerMF
/ Women's Soccer
D
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