SAN DIEGO – Senior Laura Fuentes scored on a penalty kick in the 58th minute against the Army West Point Black Knights to send the San Diego State women's soccer team a 1-0 victory in each team's season opener. The win improved the Aztecs record in season openers on SDSU's home field to 15-6-1.
Fuentes, a senior out of Newark, Calif., got the keeper to go left and slotted the ball low to the right to convert the PK. She is a perfect 4-of-4 in penalty kicks for her career. The attempt was set up by fellow senior Lauren Dicus, who with the ball in the Army West Point box, attempted a pass which one of the Black Knights touched with her hand. The ball was placed on the spot and Fuentes took care of the rest.
The first 45 minutes were fairly even, especially on the stat sheet. The Aztecs out shot Army West Point 5-4 and had a couple of dangerous chances which they were unable to convert.
In the 29th minute, Anna Toohey, who was just inside the left corner of the box, took a pass from Fuentes, who was at the top of the 18. Toohey showed the ball to a defender, then took it back and drove around her. She fired a shot across the face of the goal from 15 yards out which the Black Knight's keeper had no chance to stop.
Later in the period, Malia Kaleiohi got free down the right side and served the ball into the six toward a crashing Emma Gaines-Ramos. Gaines-Ramos was driving to the back post, but the ball was just out of her reach and the teams went to the intermission tied at 0-0.
"We knew Army was going to be very organized, have a plan, stick to that plan," head coach Mike Friesen said. "We were prepared for a lot of what they did in the first half, but we just didn't follow through on our game plan. One of the things they did was to step up and squeeze us and we didn't play over the top of them. That was one of the things we talked about at half time and in the first 15 seconds of the second half, we played behind them and that really opened the game up."
On the play that turned the game, center defender Kiera Utush took possession in Aztec territory and played a ball deep down the middle of the field. Sarah Funk, a freshman forward, ran onto it, laid it off for Toohey who gave it right back, but the Black Knight's keeper Sage Strohman charged off her line and dove on the ball to smother the play.
Then in the 53rd minute, Fuentes, on the left side of the box, took a cross from Funk, settled it and then fired a shot just over the crossbar.
Finally, at the 57:38 mark, her PK attempt found the back of the net for what would eventually be the game winner.
San Diego State continued to press its advantage for the next 20-plus minutes and produced 12 of the team's total of 15 shots through the first 80 minutes.
However, in the final 10 minutes, the Black Knights turned up the pressure. They took six of their seven shots in the half in that time span and forced Aztecs' keeper Alexa Madueno to make the three saves she had in the second half. None was more important than a stop at the 82:18 mark. Army West Point's Keira Vesy found the ball 10 yards out on the left side of the box and fired a shot which would have tied the game, but Madueno dove to her left and punched it over the end line to preserve the 1-0 lead.
For the game, Madueno made four saves and earned the fourth clean sheet of her San Diego State career.
Offensively, Fuentes led the side with four shots, three on frame and a goal. Gaines-Ramos, Denise Castro and Claire Watkins, each produced two shots each and Toohey, Dicus, Funk, Trinity Coker and Hope Paredes each took one shot.
The Aztecs are back in action on Sunday night on the Sports Deck. They host Pepperdine at 7 p.m.
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Fuentes PK The Difference In 1-0 Victory
