Aug. 29, 2017
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU Women's Soccer Weekly Notes
Game Week Preview
San Diego (0-3; 0-0 WCC) at San Diego State (1-3; 0-0 MW)
Friday, Sept. 1 | 7 p.m. PT | Mountain West Network | SDSU Sports Deck | San Diego, Calif.
Storylines
- San Diego State will complete its four-game homestand on Friday when cross-town foe San Diego heads east to Montezuma Mesa. The game is set for a 7 p.m. PT start and will stream online on the Mountain West Network. Admission is free at SDSU Sports Deck.
- The city showdown features two teams that are in need of a victory. San Diego State went 0-2 last week, losing in heartbreaking fashion to Arizona State and being shutout by Long Beach State. USD, meanwhile, has dropped all three of its games, most recently on Sunday to Texas Tech.
- SDSU on Friday rallied in the second half to tie the score at 1-1 vs. Arizona State and eventually forced overtime. The Aztecs, however, allowed a goal with eight seconds left in the first OT to fall, 2-1. Aliyah Utush connected with Angela Mitchell, who scored her first of the season in the 68th minute.
- On Sunday vs. Long Beach State, much like the game vs. Arizona State, it was a tale of two halves. The Aztecs struggled to gain any sort of rhythm in the first 45 minutes before hitting their stride in the second half against the 49ers. Despite the second-half activity, SDSU's 2-0 hole proved too deep. San Diego State was outshot, 5-2, in the first half, but rebounded to outshoot LBSU in the second half, 7-3. A handful of those seven attempts were dangerous chances that the Aztecs could not put away.
- San Diego State has gone with the same starting lineup in all four games this season and the youth and inexperience cannot be understated. Head coach Mike Friesen has tabbed four true freshmen, one junior transfer and a sophomore who did not start in 2016 for his Starting XI.
- Breaking down the starting lineup by position, two of SDSU's three forwards are true freshmen, two of its three midfielders are newcomers (true freshman, junior transfer) and the third is coming off a knee injury that cost her the final six games of 2016, and of its four defenders, three are either new to the team or are new to the position. The only stalwarts in their position from last year are goalkeeper Gabby English, forward Utush and defender Stacie Moran.
- With her assist on Friday vs. ASU, Utush picked up her 50th career point to move her into a 10th-place tie with former teammate Victoria Barba on the school's career points list. Utush assisted on Mitchell's goal, which was her 17th of her career, tying her with Utush for 12th in program history.
- Utush leads the Aztecs with five points after totaling 13 in all of 2016. The senior also leads the team in goals (2), shots (10), shots on goal (8) and game-winners (1), while sharing the lead in assists (1).
- San Diego State's 1-3 start is not ideal, but it should not be cause for concern. The Aztecs last season started 0-4 and were outscored, 13-0, before rebounding with a 10-3-4 record the rest of the way and earning a spot in the Mountain West title game. SDSU fell short in the championship game on penalty kicks, denying them a spot in the NCAA tournament.
- The Aztecs' 10-win season last year was the program's sixth straight double-digit win campaign, which brought them one closer to the school record of seven. San Diego State produced seven consecutive double-figure win seasons from 1993-99. During that span, SDSU won 93 games (13.3 wins per year), captured three conference titles and earned two NCAA tournament berths.
- The Aztecs enter Friday's game with the Toreros owning a 9-6-1 all-time record vs. the school in Linda Vista. SDSU dropped a 2-0 road decision last season to USD, but has won three straight at home and is unbeaten in five games vs. the Toreros in games played at SDSU (4-0-1). The last meeting came in 2015 and was an offensive display by both teams, one in which the Aztecs won, 4-3.
- SDSU will see an old friend on the Torero sidelines as former assistant coach Edgar Anzaldo makes his first appearance on Montezuma Mesa since he left following the 2015 campaign. After three seasons on Friesen's staff, Anzaldo took an assistant coaching job at Gonzaga where he stayed for one year before returning to San Diego to join the USD staff in the same capacity.
- After the game with San Diego, the Aztecs will prepare for three straight road games against highly regarded squads. San Diego State will head to the midwest to face No. 14 Nebraska on Sept. 8, and then to Missouri, a team that received votes last week in the United Soccer Coaches poll, on Sept. 10. The following week features just one game, but it is against another team receiving votes in Texas Tech on Sept. 15. The Red Raiders, with seven points this week, are 40th nationally and were 1-0 winners over USD on Sunday.
Opponent Notebook
San Diego
The Toreros are 0-3 on the season and still looking for its first goal scored... In three games, USD has been outscored 4-0, all of which have been at home... The Toreros are making their first road trip of the year and are coming off a 2016 campaign in which they went 2-7 on the road... As a team this season, San Diego has been outshot, 54-16, with Summer Mason taking six of its 16 shots... Three Toreros (Kelsi Dantu, Maggie Ghotbi, Ally Ocon) have two shots apiece... Only four of USD's 16 shots have been on target... Amber Michel has logged every minute between the posts... After its game at San Diego State, the Toreros will return home to face Denver on Sunday afternoon.