Oct. 27, 2015
SPARTANS BEGIN THREE-GAME HOME STRETCH FRIDAY VERSUS UNLV
The San José State women's soccer team plays at home one last time this year in the regular-season finale on Friday at 2:00 p.m., versus Fresno State. The Spartans are in the Mountain West Tournament after their win on Sunday, but this rivalry game against the Bulldogs also has seeding implications for the championship next week. It's also senior day and five Spartans will play in their final-career match at home. Get to Spartan Soccer Field early on Friday for the pregame ceremony to celebrate their careers.
MATCH #19
San José State (9-7-2, 7-3-0 MW) vs. Fresno State (5-11-1, 4-5-1 MW)
Friday, October 30, 2015, 2:00 p.m. PT
San Jose, Calif.
Spartan Soccer Field (400)
LIVE STATS
LIVE VIDEO
Tournament Berth Clinched, but still work to do
While San José State has clinched a spot in the Mountain West Championship Tournament (Nov. 3-7), there is still a ton in the balance for the upcoming match on Friday afternoon versus Fresno State. A Spartans win or tie, coupled with a New Mexico loss would give SJSU a first-round bye in the tournament. While the Spartans are taking on Fresno State, New Mexico will play host to the regular-season champion San Diego State Aztecs.
FRESNO STATE IS PLAYING FOR ITS LIFE
With 16 points heading into Friday's match, Fresno State's hope for the MW Tournament are still alive, barely. A loss would eliminate the Bulldogs, however, a win couple with losses by either Utah State or Boise State, and losses by both Colorado College and UNLV would punch a ticket to the championship.
SENIOR DAY AT SPARTAN SOCCER FIELD
Five spartan seniors: Rachel Docherty, Zoe Makrigiannis, Darlene Rodriguez, Becca Spangler and Mireya Wathen-Mayorga will all play in their final career match at home on Friday. A pregame ceremony will begin approximately 15 minutes before the match to honor the group.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Fresno State comes to San Jose with a 5-11-1 overall record and is 4-5-1 in MW play. Last week the Bulldogs split a pair of matches, defeating Nevada, 1-0, and falling 2-1 to UNLV. Myra Delgadillo leads the team with six goals, 14 points and two assists. She has three game-winners on the year. The last time the two teams met ended in a 4-0 Spartan victory at Fresno State on Oct. 31, 2014. That win however was the first for SJSU since 2010, and the Bulldogs control the all-time series 14-7-2 dating back to 1995. The last time SJSU beat Fresno State at home will be exactly six year ago to the day of the match, October 30, 2009.
ANOTHER GAME-WINNER FOR HOPPIUS
Three of Dorthe Hoppius' goals in conference play have been game-winner. She netted another one last Sunday in the 2-0 victory over Nevada, which clinched a spot in the Mountain West Tournament. Heading into the final regular-season match, Hoppius is among the Mountain West leaders with 11 points, five goals and 1.10 points per game during conference play. She has scored in five of the last six matches for SJSU.
15TH SHUTOUT COMES EASY FOR MAKRIGIANNIS
Senior keeper Zoe Makrigiannis earned her 15th career save last Sunday when the Spartans beat Nevada 2-0. It was certainly her easiest shutout of the season as Nevada didn't get one shot off in the entire 90 minutes. Nonetheless, Makrigiannis continues to separate herself from the rest of the pack on SJSU's all-time career shutouts list.
SPARTAN KEEPERS LEAD THE CONFERENCE
San José State is the top-ranked team in the conference for goals against average at 0.59. In 10 MW matches, SJSU has allowed just six goals in 921:44 of gametime. Zoe Makrigiannis and her five shutouts have played a huge part in that stat, but freshman keeper Paige Simoneau showed last Sunday that she can play right up with the best of them. Simoneau entered in the 57th minute and held the conference's top offense (San Diego State) scoreless.
SPARTANS EDGED 2-1 in first-place showdown
In a battle for the top of the Mountain West table, San José State was edged 2-1 by San Diego State. The Spartans struck first in the fourth minute with a header by Dorthe Hoppius, but less than a minute later SDSU evened the match. Leah Pruitt scored the game-winning goal for the Aztecs in the 56th minute. It was the first loss on the road in conference play for the Spartans, and the seventh win in a row kept San Diego State undefeated at home in 2015.