The No. 8 Chico State Wildcats (8-3-2, 2-1-2 CCAA) lost a tough rivalry match against the Sonoma State Seawolves (3-4-5, 1-3-1 CCAA) by a score of 2-1 Thursday evening.
Physicality was the focal point of the Seawolves game plan, which was apparent after the blowing of the first whistle. There were a total of 20 fouls called, 15 of which went against Sonoma State. Surprisingly, there weren’t any yellow cards handed out.
“We knew that it would get chippy, but I think they were just trying to slow the game down, and waste the clock, and that’s what they did and it worked in their favor,” sophomore midfielder Sylas Sells said.
Sonoma State got out to a quick start thanks to a goal from freshman midfielder Alejandro Verdugo in the 21st minute, assisted by sophomore defender Cam Fisk.
In the first 45 minutes, the Wildcats outshot the Seawolves 5-4, yet had no goals to show for it.
Much like the first half, Sonoma State came out of the half aggressive and it paid off. Sophomore winger Ronaldo Gonzalez scored the team’s second goal of the match in the 47th minute, putting the Seawolves up 2-0.
From that point on, the Wildcats were in an all-out attacking mindset in hopes to secure a draw at the very least.
It wasn’t until the 75th minute mark when Sells fired in a shot from inside the box that was redirected by senior midfielder Benjamin Ralph, finding the back of the net. The deflection earned Ralph his third goal of the season, and Sells recorded his fourth assist.
The Wildcats biggest chance of the day came in the 81st minute. Senior forward Miles Rice was played through for a one-on-one with the keeper, but was unable to convert as his shot hit the right post, being inches away from the game-tying goal.
That was the final opportunity for the Wildcats, who were extremely disappointed with Thursday’s results.
“I think we just need to take every team seriously and treat every team like they’re number one in the nation,” Sells said. “We underestimated them, and came out slow, now we just have to win and come out strong every time.”
Chico State’s national ranking will presumably take a hit following Thursday’s California Collegiate Athletic Association conference loss. However, the Wildcats will have a chance to right their wrongs on Sunday in Humboldt, when they take on the Cal Poly Humboldt Lumberjacks (2-6-4, 1-3-1 CCAA).
For information about all Chico State athletics or to keep up with the game live, visit the Wildcat home page, or watch through FloSports.
Lukas Mann can be reached at [email protected].
