49ers deadlock in last home game of season

By Phil Witte
Daily Forty-Niner

The light at the end of the tunnel representing the Big West Championship got a little dimmer after the Long Beach State women's soccer team battled to a 0-0 draw with the University of Idaho Sunday at George Allen Field.

The tie moved the 49ers (6-7-2 overall, 3-2-1 Big West Conference) into third place in the conference, two points behind the Vandals (9-6-2, 3-2-2) and UC Irvine (9-5-2, 4-1-0).

"It was a frustrating game," said 49er Head Coach Julie Cochran. "I don't think we performed to the best of our abilities, but in a season you're going to have games like this."

Sunday's game, which had a season-high attendance of 505, was the last home game of the season and seniors Jennifer Reott and Marisa DeCollibus were honored in a small ceremony before the game.    DeCollibus earned her first start of the season in the game and almost marked the event with her first career goal, but her eighth-minute effort was ruled offside before her shot hit the back of the net.

Both goals seemed to be guarded by force fields, as the teams combined for 36 shots, but only six of those were on target.

The goalkeepers spent most of the game collecting errant passes and swatting away crosses, and The Beach's Hannah Cochrun was not forced to make a save until three minutes into overtime.

The 49ers had the best chances in the first half, with tough shots by freshmen Jordan Smith and Lacy Brown forcing diving saves from Vandal goalie Jenell Miller.

Lacking the killer instinct they displayed last week against Pacific, The Beach dominated possession in the first half but came away empty.

"Our defense played and we never let up on attack," said sophomore Becky Ricci. "We had a couple of breakdowns but we picked ourselves right back up and never let them through."

The second half held more of the same with LBSU outshooting the Vandals 11-4, but most of the shots for both teams sailed over the bar.

Normally the fittest team on the field, the 49ers tired a bit at the end and had to fend off a few Idaho counterattacks to preserve the tie before the end of regulation.

"We did all right, but we had a problem attacking as a whole," said sophomore Sarah Aguilar. "In the first overtime we showed a lot of heart and effort but we just couldn't put it in the net."

Junior Kim Domen missed the best chance of the extra frame when Aguilar's headed flick from junior Sarah Gamet's throw-in bounced just past her foot as she dove toward the goal.

Next up for The Beach is a two-state road trip that will close out conference play for the season with games against the bottom two teams in the Big West.

First up is Boise State (4-9-1, 1-4-0) Friday at 3:00 p.m., followed by Utah State (3-11-0, 1-4-0) Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Finishing out the season is a Nov. 2 game at Pepperdine.

Wins against those two will not be enough for the 49ers. Results in games involving the other top Big West teams must go in their favor for a chance at a Big West title.

Cochran is still confident about the performance this season.

"We're still moving forward," Cochran said. "We want to finish higher than we did last year and I think we'll do that, but we're not closing the book on this year."

Caroline Limuti/Daily Forty-Niner

Sophomore defender Sarah Gamet works the soccer ball around an Idaho opponent.