Sacramento State’s women’s soccer team beat The University of Albany 1-0 Friday night. Junior Leah Larot scored the game’s lone goal thirty minutes into the first period. Albany’s goalkeeper bobbled a shot by Elece McBride seconds before Larot tipped the ball into an empty net. “I actually haven’t scored in a really long time, so it did feel really good,” she said.

The Hornets, however are not feeling great about their game play.

“What we’ve been working on didn’t really translate to the field,” said head coach Randy Dedini.

They had trouble keeping possession of the ball during the first period, and as a consequence spent much of the game in their own territory. Albany out shot the Hornets with 16 shots to Sacramento State’s 9. Savannah Abercrombie made two good saves in the second period to keep Albany scoreless. She had six saves total.

The Hornets picked up their intensity in the second half after playing flat during the first period, though uncommon errors including turnovers, and what Dedini called “loose defensive play” gave Albany plenty of opportunities to tie.

“We knew we had to step up and play better, so we tried to stay more composed, get open with each other and communicate with open passes,” said senior Kim Kemper.

Quicker passes helped The Hornets keep pace with Albany and ball possession improved in the second half. The Great Danes had a few scoring chances in the last four minutes, but the Hornets countered with a shot of their own with 50 seconds left in the match. The Hornets held the Great Danes off in their own end as time expired to record their first win of the season.

The Hornets will look to be more physical and play quicker in their upcoming game when they host UC Santa Barbara Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

Jeondra Arrington can be reached [email protected]