VALPARAISO, Ind. — The Chicago State women's soccer won their first match of the season with a thrilling 2-1 win over Valparaiso.
"Our team tactically executed what was asked of them," head coach Aulani Fernandez said. "Then, when you add in passion, resilience and heart, we become a team hard to compete with. I'm extremely proud of our team and feel so lucky to have experienced my first win as a head coach with them."
In the first half, the Cougars relentlessly attacked which produced several scoring chances. At the thirteenth minute, a corner kick gifted to the Cougars produced a chance in which Veronica Avila struck in a goal to earn the lead early at 1-0.
The Beacons tried to counter numerous times however were unsuccessful and the score remained 1-0 heading into halftime.
To start the second half, the Beacons pressed the Cougars which forced them to defend. Unfortunately, eventually the Beacons' constant attacks payed off with a goal at the 73rd minute from Addy Joiner which tied the game all up at 1-1.
Chicago State now was forced to push up to look for a go-ahead goal late in the game. It wasn't until the 87th minute mark that a penalty kick was awarded to the Cougars, which Dyana Dawood calmly converted to stun the Beacons with a late winner at 2-1.
The Cougars next face the University of Idaho in Chicago on Sunday at 12 p.m.
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. In 1991, the Chicago State women's tennis team became the first all-black college team to amass an unbeaten season at the NCAA level. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title, also making an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. Chicago State volleyball recorded a historic season in 2021, with Yanlis Feliz becoming CSU's first volleyball All-American and head coach Tony Trifonov earning selection as WAC Coach of the Year. During that same season, three different CSU teams earned victories over Big Ten opponents with men's soccer beating Northwestern, women's basketball upending Wisconsin and volleyball, which established a school record 17 wins and hosted a post-season volleyball tournament for the first time in program history, swept Indiana in Bloomington.
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