POMONA, Calif. – Friday night didn't go exactly as planned for the Cal Poly Pomona women's soccer team but nonetheless, the Broncos are heading to the playoffs and they've established a new program record with a 10-game undefeated streak.
In other action around the league Friday, CPP got some help from an unlikely source. San Francisco State battled to a 1-1 draw with Cal State L.A., ending the Golden Eagles' postseason chances and securing the No. 4 seed for the Broncos.
At Kellogg Field Friday night, CPP played to a 2-2 draw against Cal State Dominguez Hills. With a 7-4-3 mark and 24 points in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the Broncos have earned the No. 4 seed for the conference tournament to be held on Friday, Nov. 2 and Sunday, Nov. 4 in Carson. The seedings and game times will be determined after Sunday's action concludes.
It'll mark the program's eighth appearance in the CCAA Tournament and the first since 2004. The possible game times for the Broncos on Nov. 2 are either 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. The possible semifinal-round opponents for CPP on Friday are Sonoma State or Cal State Stanislaus and the matchup depends on the outcome of Sunday's regular season finale between those two teams.
The Broncos started off Friday's match against the Toros with plenty of explosiveness on offense. Junior
Samantha Stiles continued her trend of spectacular play with a goal in the 26th minute. After a free kick from
Kristin Mihara,
Alison Sauve put an initial shot on target. Although that attempt was saved by Toros' goalkeeper Tiffany Hollis, Stiles knocked in the rebound chance to put CPP ahead 1-0. It marks Stiles' seventh goal of 2012 and fifth in the last four games.
In the 38th minute, the Broncos extended their lead to 2-0.
Mindy Castro sent a pass through the midfield that led
Kaelyn Kaichi toward the box. Kaichi dribbled around a pair of defenders and then blasted a shot past Hollis for the score. The assist for Castro, a freshman from Rancho Cucamonga, marked her first career point as a Bronco.
Although CPP held that 2-0 edge into the late stages of the second half, the visiting Dominguez squad staged an impressive rally in the final 10 minutes of regulation. A goal from Caitlin Peterson got the Toros on the board at the 81:40 mark, trimming the score to a one-goal difference.
Dominguez continued to ramp up the pressure as the time ticked away and as the ball bounced through the box in the final moments, a hand ball called on the Broncos gave the Toros a penalty kick opportunity with five seconds remaining in regulation. Olivia Patterson converted the chance to send the game into overtime at 2-2.
CPP ended up outshooting Dominguez 5-2 through the two overtime periods and 29-14 through the entire match but the Broncos couldn't rebound for the game winner and ended up having to settle for the 2-2 draw. The draw certainly is still significant as it shatters the program record for the length of an undefeated streak, previously set at nine games in 1990. The 2012 Broncos haven't lost since Sept. 21, a span stretching 10 matches.
With a spot in the CCAA Tournament secure, CPP will now turn its attention to Sunday's 2 p.m. home match against Cal State L.A. It'll be "Senior Day" at Kellogg Field with a pregame ceremony for the Broncos' six seniors.
