Sydney Cooke
Alisha Wilson
2
Winner Cal St. Dom. Hills CSUDH (1-0-0, 0-0-0)
0
Academy of Art ART U (0-1-0, 0-0-0)
Winner
Cal St. Dom. Hills CSUDH
(1-0-0, 0-0-0)
2
Final
0
Academy of Art ART U
(0-1-0, 0-0-0)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Cal St. Dom. Hills CSUDH 1 1 2
Academy of Art ART U 0 0 0

Game Recap: Women's Soccer |

Despite Chances, Women's Soccer Bested In Opener

SAN FRANCISCO – Academy of Art women's soccer relished the opportunity to take the field against opponents outside of the Pacific West Conference for the first time since 2019, as ART U faced off against Cal State Dominguez Hills in the 2021 season opener on Friday. An early Toros goal would make it an uphill battle for the Urban Knights, who despite having chances in both halves, would see CSUDH walk away with the 2-0 win. 

It took just four minutes into the match for the Toros (1-0-0) to score, as Taleah Carter put the first tally on the board by following up a shot and putting home the rebound following a CSUDH corner kick. Just a minute later, the Urban Knights (0-1-0) would follow with a great chance of their own, as a shot from sophomore defender Raquel Calvo Mendez would find its way on goal, but was saved by Toros goalkeeper Ashley Correia.

Neither team would put another shot on goal, though the Urban Knights would see a decent chance from senior forward Baylie Christensen while Cal State Dominguez Hills would record six more shots before the game went into the half. 

Raquel Calvo MendezYet again would the Toros strike early in the half, as nice passing would lead to a chance from Alicia Covarrubias before an errant clearing of the ball would allow Covarrubias to put the ball in the net during the 50th minute. Constant pressure in the form of 16 shots would be applied by Cal State Dominguez Hills, but a strong effort in goal from sophomore goalkeeper Nicole Peoples kept ART U in the match, making a total of nine saves in the frame. 

Twice would Academy of Art have scoring opportunities in the second half, including senior forward Brooklyn Morera racing a defender toward the net before firing a shot that barely curved wide. Senior midfielder Sydney Cooke put the second shot on goal, as she was able to make a move past her defender into the right side of the box and launched a low shot that was saved by Correia. 

Academy of Art will look to rebound next time out when they face Cal State Monterey Bay next Friday, Sept. 10 back at Paul Goode Field at noon.