It was a rough game for Sacramento State women’s soccer against the Idaho Vandals. They lost 1-0 despite a promising start and a strong finish.
The Hornets kept the game tied with no goals scored until a push down the middle by Idaho slipped past the Hornets’ defense just seven minutes into the second half.
Sac State had a hard time finding their footing early in the game. They only took two shots compared to Idaho’s eight in the first half hour. After a bombardment of three back- to- back shots saved by freshman goalkeeper Izzy Palmatier, there was a handball called against junior midfielder Cassandra Herrman.
“I don’t think it should have been called,” Palmatier said. “It didn’t really hit [Herrman]. It’s arguable.”
In the end, it didn’t matter. Palmatier saved the penalty shot, knocking it out of the way, and then blocked another attempt before it was pushed out of bounds.
“I just remembered: stay calm, react to the ball, and read as much of it as I could,” Palmatier said. “I noticed that her front plant foot was pretty straight on, which wouldn’t allow her to go across her body much. I was just ready to go and she went to the left, I went to the left and made the save.”
Palmatier’s impressive save boosted her team’s confidence for the rest of the game and they quickly started matching Idaho, ending the game only two shots behind.
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There were 18 foul calls the whole game split evenly between both teams, but it was Sac State who got the short end of the stick. Three yellow cards on players and the red card was pulled on Sac State head coach Randy Dedini for abusive language after the Vandals’ goal.
“We had some tough situations with the ref,” sophomore midfielder Madelyn Dougherty said. “But you can never just blame the game on the ref.”
All season, even in games they won, Sac State has continually struggled with the same problem: getting the ball in the goal. They have done an amazing job taking shots, especially in the last few games, but it’s not enough.
“I think we competed, for sure,” Palmatier said. “We’re still getting our shots off, but more to be done with getting them on frame and actually having them be a challenge.”
In the last 15 minutes of the match, the Hornets swarmed the Vandals’ goal. Sac State managed to keep possession of the ball for most of it and stayed almost exclusively on their offensive half.
In the final seconds of the game, Idaho sent the ball all the way out of the stadium and there was a mad scramble to grab another before the clock ran out. Sac State managed a throw in and got the ball to junior midfielder Abigail Lopez who took her chance, but was just seconds too late.
“I knew I didn’t have that much time,” Lopez said. “I scored in Colorado with the last 45 seconds of the game, so it doesn’t stop until the game is over.”
Sac State and Idaho are now tied in the Big Sky Conference with a 2-2-1 record. The Hornets’ next match will be at Weber State on Friday, Oct. 13 at 6 p.m.
