After splitting the road trip 1-1, Colorado State soccer came home looking to improve their all-time record against San Diego State at 1-9-2; however, it came away with a 2-2 tie Thursday in Fort Collins.
Though the Rams didn’t win, they haven’t lost hope. Junior midfielder Mia Casey played with full determination the entirety of the game, despite what the scoreboard showed.
“It’s the love of the game,” Casey said. “I love every second being out here, and I don’t want to waste my time on the field. So, I am going to go out there and always give them 100 percent, no matter what the result is or no matter how the game is going.”
SDSU had two early goals in the second half, leaving the Rams’ offense shut down for the majority of the second half. Goalie Gray Willson had five second-half saves, keeping the game alive for CSU.
CSU continued with its offensive pressure, and soon enough the Aztecs’ defense broke, allowing senior defender Kate Dunne to tie it up in the 86th minute.
“(I’m) proud of our group for fighting back,” head coach Keely Hagen said. “To get a point, I mean every point matters at this point, right?”
However, with a tie, the team was disappointed, given the Mountain West Tournament implications.
“It’s a lot better getting one point than zero, I’ll tell you that,” senior forward Olivia Fout said. “But, we should have gotten three (points) today. We just didn’t fight to the very end, not all of us. It just comes down to the controllables. Running hard and fast, bringing energy and all those things that are in control.”
Controlling the controllables is something that Fout does in her preparation, along with self-accountability. Fout had five shots in Thursday’s game, and though none of them went in, it was a strong display of her unwavering effort and character.
“I stay after usually every practice, and I just get little reps up just finishing and pacing the corner where I find myself usually in games,” Fout said. “But today wasn’t good enough for me. I should of put the ball in the back of the net.”
One thing that the Rams look for is consistency, which was not on display today. As the defense in the second half was inconsistent, when compared to the first half.
The Rams helped themselves with time of possession during the first half, which dwindled SDSU’s opportunities. The lack of control in the second half allowed the Aztecs to more than double their shots, which led to two early second-half goals.
“I felt that it was the tale of two halves,” Hagen said. “I thought we came out good first half, and they made an adjustment, and we couldn’t solve it in the second half right away. And (we) gave them way too much time and space. They are a good team and they’re going to take advantage of it.”
With two games left in the regular season, the match certainly had implications with the MW Tournament. CSU currently sits at No. 5 in the MW standings; the team, however, is taking it one step at a time.
“You’re in control of whether you feel the pressure or not,” Casey said. “So we’re constantly telling ourselves, ‘There is no pressure, pressure is not a thing on this team, it’s just next half.’”
The team is all on the same page despite the results.
Confidence is something that the Rams have in each other. Willson was still diving for saves while being down, Casey was still pressuring the Aztecs offensively, the team stayed focused, continuously creating offensive opportunities for each other.
“I am proud of this team,” Casey said. “And I am not worried about the tournament or anything. I know we can do it, and I think we all have that belief in ourselves, too.”
The Rams close out their home regular-season play against Nevada Sunday.
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Reach Aron Medrano at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @AronMedrano27.
