SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Battling against one of the best defensive teams in the country, Sacramento State juniors
Jaety Mandaquit and
Mia Jackson were each able to put shots in the back of the net on Wednesday afternoon, but visiting California Baptist had just a little bit more, holding off the Hornets for a 4-2 win in a spirited match at Hornet Soccer Field.
The loss moved Sacramento State to 6-7-5 overall and 2-5-3 in Big West play, eliminating the Hornets from conference tournament consideration with one regular season match remaining. The Lancers improved to 9-3-4 overall and 4-3-3 in league play.
With CBU entering the day having allowed only five goals all year — a total which ranked tied for first in the nation in fewest goals allowed — Sacramento State became only the second school to put a pair past the Lancers' defense along with Cal Poly, which posted a 2-1 win over California Baptist earlier in the year.
The Hornets nearly took the lead in the third minute of play after
Tierra Pickell rang a shot off the crossbar and they kept the pressure on with a pair of corners and another Pickell attempt that sailed wide.
Sacramento State finally got on the board first six minutes later as Mandaquit put home her fourth of the year, staking the Hornets to a 1-0 lead. Junior
Tanner Michael took a free kick from the near side from about 40 yards away and Mandaquit timed her run perfectly, burying the header to the right side for the early advantage.
Mandaquit moved into third place on the team with nine points thanks to the score, while Michael tallied her first collegiate point thanks to the assist.
Two minutes later, CBU equalized on a goal by Anja Jestrovic, who bounced a low-liner through traffic from 20 yards out to tie things up at one apiece, then teammate Jessica Ramirez cleaned up a loose ball in the box that the Hornets were unable to clear to give the Lancers the lead for good.
Jestrovic was quick to give CBU a two-goal lead just five minutes into the second half as the Hornets were charged with a foul in the box after review and the Lancers' leading scorer finished off her brace on the penalty attempt in the 50th minute.
Sacramento State clawed one goal back in the 66th minute as
Mia Jackson netted her fourth goal of the season off an assist from
Ellie Farber to make it 3-2, but Alyse Then put the match out of reach with her second of the year off a free kick by Ava Lopez that was flicked back inside the six-yard box off the head of Maya Yoshimura.
With her goal, Jackson moved into second place on the team with 10 points while Farber tallied her second assist of the season to go with three goals for eight points. Jackson, along with teammate
Candace Ching and her team-high 13 points, become the first Hornet duo with 10-or-more points in a single year since 2019 when Kylee Kim-Bustillos (21), Ariana Nino (12), and Aubrey Goodwill (11) all finished in double figures.
California Baptist held a 22-12 advantage in shots, putting 13 of its attempts on frame to seven for the Hornets. Goalkeeper
Delaney Timmons finished with a Sacramento State career-high seven saves while two more were cleared off the line by defenders.
Mandaquit led all Hornets with four shots, putting three on goal, while Pickell added three of her own.
Sacramento State closes out the regular season on Saturday (Oct. 31) at 1 p.m., traveling down the coast to take on Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, Calif.
