Cal Poly Women’s Soccer defeated the UC Irvine Anteaters behind a 94th-minute golden goal from sophomore midfielder Monserrat Hernandez Marquez on Friday, Nov. 1 inside Alex G. Spanos Stadium.
UC Irvine (4-12-1, 3-3-1 Big West) came into the game seeking a third or fourth seed for the upcoming Big West Tournament as they were in fifth-place in the standings. However, the Mustangs (5-10-3, 2-3-2 Big West) had already been eliminated from the playoffs.
“They were playing for everything and we were playing with nothing to lose, so they were coming out hard,” senior forward Jordan Patane said.
Despite a combined 13 shots in the first half, neither side could get on the scoreboard. The Anteaters had a scoring opportunity in the 45th minute after they drew a penalty kick. However, UC Irvine defender Kala Mcdaniel could not convert the penalty.
The Anteaters took an early 1-0 lead in the 53rd-minute after defender Piper Wurth scored off a cross from midfielder Amber Huff.
Cal Poly cut their deficit in the 59th-minute when freshman midfielder Camille Lafaix drew a penalty after being fouled in the penalty box by an Anteater defender. Patane was able to convert her third penalty of the season to equalize the game at 1-1.
“It looked like [the goalkeeper] was just going to guess and so I thought about going the way I always go, but she guessed early so I went the opposite way,” Patane said.
The Mustangs used their momentum to take the lead in the 72nd minute as junior forward Georgina Stiegeler scored off a rebound from a Lafaix shot attempt that was deflected by Irvine goalkeeper Maddie Newsom.
However, the Anteaters responded five minutes later when Newsom found defender Aleah Kelley for a header. The header redirected the ball to Kala Mcdaniel for the equalizer.
Neither team scored to pull ahead before the end of regulation as the game went into overtime tied at 2-2.
Hernandez Marquez spoiled the Anteater’s playoff hopes in the 94th minute as she blasted a shot into the top-right corner of the net for the golden goal.
“It was an amazing feeling,” Hernandez Marquez said. “I have not felt that in a long time.”
Crozier praised Hernandez Marquez for her scoring effort after the match.
“[Hernandez Marquez] does that in practice quite often, and here she did it when it was counted,” Crozier said.
The Mustangs will host UC Riverside on Sunday, Nov. 3 at 2 p.m inside Alex G. Spanos for the last game of the regular season.