After several hot days, Fort Collins cooled off with some rain as well as a brand new college sports season.

Colorado State soccer took the field for the first time since the Mountain West Championship. The Rams took on North Texas with a familiar face between the pipes. Former CSU goalkeeper Maddie Ogden made her return to Fort Collins since her transfer to UNT at the end of the 2022 season. 

The game was a wet and physical match between the two teams, leading to many slips and falls along the way. It was hard for either team to establish a footing in the wet grass as the rain kept pouring on the field. At one point, the redshirt freshman Sam Cortez went down hard on her shoulder after slipping, but was able to get up and finish the game. 

This exhibition match between the Mean Green and the Rams marks the first time the new CSU Soccer Field has been played in and it was a wild game to break in the new field. The first ever goal scored there was kicked in by sophomore Bridget Arnold in the 42nd minute of the game. 

“I was really proud of how we played and battled,” Arnold said. “We’ve been working really hard all summer and I think our energy is great. Of course, had my teams back behind me backing me up. I (could) hear our bench everyone else just cheering us on. So, I think that’s just a great testament to our team and what we’ve built, and I’m just super proud of us and starting out in the first game back.” 

The Rams came out of halftime up 1-0. Kaja Dionne helped expand the Rams’ lead with a goal in the 54th minute making it 2-0. However, the Mean Green would stomp back and score a goal in the 58th minute and follow that up with another goal in the 75th minute, making it two goals for each side. 

The game was extremely physical, especially for an exhibition match. The player who got the worst of it was Katy Coffin, who defended the sidelines like her life depended on it. She was boxed out, pushed, tripped and still made plays. She was an anchor on the left side of the field that the team could rely on. This physical experience will help her and the rest of the team going into the regular season. 

“It’s a good opportunity for us to get that underneath our belt before we go into the regular season and learn and just have that challenge,” Coffin said. 

It was a special homecoming for UNT’s goalie Ogden who played for the Rams in 2022. However, she did not let the familiar faces beat her. She gave up two goals but would clamp down and become a brick wall for the Mean Green. She held off three corners and an offensive presence that would not back down. She even got in great positioning to force a tough header in the last minute to keep the score tied. 

“I mean, you can’t ask for a more even result,” Ogden said. “Like no one goes home not upset, I guess. Would have loved to get the win but you know at the end of the day we pulled out the tie down two to zero.”  

Reach Alex Graser at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter at @AlexGraser5354 

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