Aztecs Travel to No. 1 UCLA Thursday Night

SAN DIEGO – San Diego State women’s soccer hit the road Thursday night for a matchup at No. 1 UCLA. The match will take place at Wallis Annenberg Stadium at 7 p.m. PT.

The Season So Far

– San Diego State earned their third draw in a row last Friday when they played Saint Mary’s to a 2-2 draw on the Sports Deck. In rainy conditions the Aztecs got goals from Deinse Castro and a penalty by Emma Gaines-Ramos to earn a point. The match was the team’s third consecutive draw, and is the first time in team history that SDSU has drawn three times in a row.

– The Aztecs earned two hard fought draws on Thursday and Sunday against cross-town foes University of San Diego and UC San Diego. On Thursday, the Aztecs and Toreros squared off, but neither team was able to find the back of the net and the teams finished level at 0-0. Claire Watkins hit the post twice in the draw, while Denise Castro was sent off late in the match and the Aztecs had to play with 10 for the final 20 minutes.

– Against UC San Diego, the Aztecs went down 1-0 at the halftime break. But goals from Logan Nidy and a penalty from Kiera Utush 44 seconds apart gave the Aztecs a 2-1 lead in the 58th minute. However, the Tritons would equalize in the 89th minute to earn the 2-2 draw.

– The Aztecs also drew at Long Beach State on Aug. 25, 2-2. With the Aztecs down 2-0 in the 82nd minute, Castro and Trinity Coker got San Diego State level in the final minutes as the Aztecs stole a draw on the road. Coker’s game-tying goal was the first of her career. The Aztecs would then travel to No. 14 Pepperdine on Aug. 28 and fell 4-0 in Malibu, Calif.

– In the season opener the Aztecs traveled to Nebraska to take on the Cornhuskers. The Aztecs would come out of the match with a win in dramatic fashion, as Castro earned the Aztecs the win 2-1, in the 90th minute. Off a cross from Lauren DicusCastro headed the ball into the back of the net, earning her first game-winner of the season. She also scored the Aztecs first goal of the match in the 28th minute, and finished the night with a brace for the second time in her career.

– As for the match against Idaho, the Aztecs initially trailed 1-0, before marching to a 7-2 win on the Sports Deck. The Aztecs scored five goals in the span of 23 minutes during the first half. Gaines-Ramos scored two goals, including the first penalty of the season. Six Aztecs got on the score sheet, including freshman Logan Nidy and sophomore Olivia Sekimoto who scored their first career goals.

Draws on the Deck

– San Diego State is on a three-match draw streak, having drawn at home against the University of San Diego 0-0, UC San Diego 2-2, and most recently Sint Mary’s last time out, 2-2.

– The Aztecs have earned three ties in a row for the first time in program history.

At The Peak

– Denise Castro (San Ysidro, Calif.) entered 2022 as the Aztecs top returning goal-scorer from the 2021 season when she bagged eight goals. The sophomore sensation has started the 2022 campaign on a tear, scoring five goals in six matches, including the game-winner over Nebraska to open the season. That goal came in the 90th minute with 28 seconds remaining in the match, and gave the Aztecs a 2-1 win to start the season. She also scored the game-winner in the Aztecs 7-2 win over Idaho on August 28.

– Entering this week’s matches, Castro is tied for 10th in the nation in points per-game averaging 2.00 per contest, and is tied for 17th in goals per game at an average of 0.83 goals per game.

– She is tied for 24th in the country in total goals with 5, tied for 24th game-winning goals with two, and is tied for 33rd in the country in total points with 12.00.

Sharing The Wealth

– San Diego State scored a total of nine goals in the first two weeks of the season, including putting seven past Idaho on August 28.

– Those seven goals scored against Idaho were the most the Aztecs had scored in a match since the 2008 season when the Aztecs beat the Air Force Academy 7-0.

– The Aztecs have a total of 11 assists through seven matches this season, and nine different players have assisted on those goals.

– Denise Castro and Emma Gaines-Ramos have two assists, Trinity Coker, Lauren Dicus, Rachelle’s Principle, Olivia Sekimoto, Grace Goins, Hope Paredes and Kiera Utush have one.