Maggie Murphy, Lisamarie La Vallee and Jennifer Iha each recorded goals to lead the Sacramento State women’s soccer team to a 3-1 win over San Jose State, Friday afternoon at Hornet Soccer Field. The win evened the Hornets’ record at .500 for the second time this season.Sacramento State is now 5-5-2 on the year while the Spartans fell to 2-13.
The Hornets got on the board first in the 13th minute when Murphy stole an errant pass from a Spartan defender and placed a shot on the right side of the net. For Murphy, a native of Walnut Creek, Calif., it was her first collegiate goal. The forward currently ranks third on the squad with six points (one goal, four assists) and her four assists are a team high.
San Jose State tied the score in the 29th minute when Alaina Chandler placed a shot in the top right corner of the goal off of assists by Christina Morrison and Molly Flanagan. Flanagan began the play by passing the ball up the right sideline. Morrison took one touch and crossed to Chandler in front of the Hornet goal for the score.
In the second half, La Vallee put Sacramento State up for good with a goal in the 57th minute. Sophomore defender Courtney Gorham began the play by striking a ball from 40 yards on the right sideline in front of the Spartan goal. The ball took one bounce before La Vallee placed a shot in the top shelf. For La Vallee, a native of Walnut Creek, Calif., it was her team-leading sixth goal of the year. The forward needs only three more scores to place in the top five spots of the program record book for goals scored in a season.
The Hornets struck again in less than a minute when Iha connected on a goal from junior midfielder Sela Suarez. Suarez began the play with a cross from the left side. Iha took the pass in front of the Spartan goal and placed a shot in the top right corner. For Iha, a native of Mililani, Hawaii, it was her second goal of the season and the second goal of her Hornet career. The forward, who made the transition from defender this season, recorded her first collegiate goal against Princeton on Sept. 19.
San Jose State goalkeeper Adrienne Herbst collected a game-high seven saves in only 30 minutes of action.
Sacramento State will continue Big Sky Conference play this week as the Hornets host Northern Arizona on Friday, Oct. 17, at 1:30 p.m. The match is the second of a scheduled doubleheader with the men’s soccer team. The Hornets are 0-0-1 in Big Sky play.
