ARCATA, Calif. - The 25th-ranked UC San Diego women's soccer team struck first Friday night with an early goal from
Sarah McTigue but Humboldt State rallied for two second-half scores to shock the Tritons by securing a 2-1 victory.
UCSD drops to 3-2 overall and 1-2 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. HSU, earning its first-ever win over the Tritons, improves to 1-4 overall and 1-2 during league play.
McTigue put the Tritons on the board in the 11th minute, beating a Lumberjacks' defender to a ball in the box and shooting low to the far post. It marked the first score of 2010 for McTigue, who tallied nine goals last season. She stayed active through the remainder of Friday's match, totaling five shots.
UCSD took the 1-0 advantage into halftime but the lead didn't last for long. The Lumberjacks evened the match at the 51:55 mark, when Kim Carroll corralled a rebound and centered the ball, which led to Arielle Kern lining a shot past Tritons' goalkeeper
Kristin Armstrong from the top of the six yard box.
Less than five minutes later HSU tacked on another score after drawing a foul in the box, which resulted in Sarah Nakamoto converting a penalty kick to give the hosts a 2-1 lead. Nakamoto proved to be the biggest challenge for UCSD's defense, as the junior collected six shots through the 90 minutes of play.
The Lumberjacks' play turned a bit chippy as they worked to hold their lead, with four HSU players receiving yellow cards. Jennie Paugh, earning her first career start in net for the Lumberjacks, totaled eight saves in a tremendous effort for the win. The Tritons earned six corner kicks but Paugh and the rest of the HSU defense held UCSD scoreless off set pieces.
The Tritons outshot the Lumberjacks 16-14 and the HSU offense failed to earn a single corner kick. Nevertheless, the home defense stayed strong in the late stages of the match and the Lumberjacks prevailed.
UCSD will look to rebound from Friday's loss when it travels to play Sonoma State at 11:30 a.m. Sunday. The Seawolves stand at 1-2-1 overall and 0-2-1 in the CCAA.
