The San José State women’s soccer team lost against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 3-1 at the Spartan Soccer Complex field on Thursday.
The Mustangs started the first half with two goals, one scored by forward Annika Smith, assisted by goalkeeper Shannon Porubski.
The second goal was by forward Jessie Halladay, with an assist from midfielder Ruby Casey.
New addition, midfielder Taejah Aitken scored SJSU’s first goal of the match with an assist from second-year Charlotte Memoly.
Aitken, a member of the Mountain West Women’s Soccer Watch List (2025), missed the first games of the season but rejoined in their last game against UC Santa Barbara on Aug. 31.
“I just came back from an injury, so being able to play only my second game and get a goal was really good for me, and I think it’s only the first of many,” Aitken said.
Most of the team is new, with 14 freshmen, 10 transfers, and six returning – Aitken understands that this loss is just part of the process.
The Spartans went into the second half with a deficit of 2-1.
However, Aitken’s goal, the first of her career, was the Spartans’ only goal.
“I know this is a new team, so it’s kind of expected, but I think we’ve been doing super well for how little we’ve seen each other,” Aitken said.
The Mustangs scored their third goal in the second half by midfielder Madelyn Dougherty with an assist from midfielder Kasia Wolf.
Senior goalkeeper Bente Pernot was the Spartans’ goalkeeper for the majority of the game, playing for over 70 minutes and having 5 saves, but was replaced by goalkeeper Paige Fry after Dougherty scored.
Fry is a new addition to the Spartans and is a member of the Mountain West Women’s Soccer Watch List (2025), alongside Aitken.
“Bente set me up the best she could,” Fry said. “She played great throughout the game, and I just went in thinking, at least this can’t get any worse.”
This is head coach Sonia Curvelo’s first season with the Spartans, but she previously coached for Sam Houston State University, Prairie View A&M University, Cleveland State University and Mississippi Valley State University.
Fry was recruited by Curvelo, following her to San José from their previous team at Sam Houston State.
“She (Curvelo) is hungry to score and to win,” Fry said.
She joined the Spartans, intending to build and improve SJSU’s women’s soccer program, as it is still relatively young.
“I know it’s going to take time to build a program that I think we can get to, but we have the players who have the ability to help us get there,” Curvelo said.
The season has been tough for the Spartans, with this game being their fifth loss out of six games so far.
“I don’t like giving up three goals, I think it’s always challenging when we do, and it makes it harder climbing up that mountain,” Curvelo said.
Despite the difficult loss for the team, she said she simply sees it as an opportunity for improvement.
“At least getting on the scoreboard at home was a positive that we have taken from this game,” Curvelo said.
