The women’s soccer team (6-3-3) concluded their final non-conference game of the season with a loss against the University of Denver Pioneers 1-0 on Sunday, recording their second straight loss at Matador Soccer Field.
The Matadors, who were coming off a 1-0 loss against Pepperdine on Thursday, were also held scoreless by the Pioneers in a close matchup and are currently on their first losing streak of the season.
CSUN was outshot by Denver 11-5 during the game with an advantage in the shot on goal category 4-1. The Pioneers also held an advantage in corner kicks over the Matadors 6-3 along with 15 fouls that were called throughout the game; the Matadors were called for six in the match. CSUN controlled the possession for the majority of the game over Denver with 53% and 35% being attributed to control of the ball in the center midfield of the pitch.
Freshman midfielder Stephanie Gallardo led the way for the Matadors with two total shots for the game. Gallardo had the lone shot on goal, with a scoring opportunity that came early on in the first half. At the 30th minute mark, Gallardo sent a shot from outside the 18 yard box that was saved by Denver goalkeeper Nerea Arrazola.
Sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Delgado recorded three saves for the Matadors, allowing a lone goal late in the first half. Delgado, in her ninth start of the season for CSUN, has allowed eight goals for the season, recording 34 saves in total and owning 3-3-3 record in goal. The deciding goal for the Pioneers came in the 42nd minute mark of game play by forward Samantha Feller that was assisted by forward Natalie Beckman.
“Definitely not our best performance,” Delgado said. “We weren’t pressuring them up high like they were coming after us. We should have went after them the same way.”
Head Coach Keith West did not have much to add when asked about how his team performed against the Pioneers.
“I don’t think we played our best game today,” West said.
The Matadors have concluded their final non-conference games of the season looking ahead to their Big West conference games starting next week.
“I think our energy was our biggest problem today … We didn’t go out there and show them the energy we usually have,” Delgado said. “I think next week we need to come out and start our conference games with the same energy we have had during our preseason games.”
West believes that their youth and need for consistency are some of the things the Matadors need to improve upon looking forward to conference games.
“Some consistency, I know we are young and I know some of these young ladies are playing a lot of minutes and are freshmen,” West said. “We are relying on a lot of our young players, but I mean, we have been playing soccer for a long time now.”
In today’s matchup, the Matadors were not able to capitalize on their opportunities early on and only produced two shots in the whole second half against the Pioneers.
“No, it is on the coach. I have to take some responsibility for today,” West said on if the result of the game was more of the Pioneers play or just not being able to capitalize on their scoring opportunities.
The Matadors are currently on a two-game losing streak for the first time this season with both games coming at home. They are looking to bounce back together as a team ahead of their road trip next week to start off their conference play.
“Just with our energy we have to stay positive within the team,” Delgado said. “At practice tomorrow, we can’t be sad about the loss. We just have to get back to work to be better and winning will help.”
The Matadors will look to improve upon their recent losses while going on the road to start off their first Big West Conference matches of the season next week. They will face the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine (2-6-1) on Oct. 3 before concluding their road trip against the UC Riverside Highlanders (2-7-1) on Oct. 6.
