LOS ANGELES -- Cal State LA's women's soccer team made history in more ways than one on a steamy Thursday night at Jesse Owens Track.

The Golden Eagles won the first game ever played on Cal State LA's new state-of-the-art turf field and they beat PacWest Conference favorite Azusa Pacific for the first time in program history as well. A second-half goal by newcomer Paulina Chaidez in the 75th minute provided all the scoring in a hard-fought 1-0 victory.

The game was pushed back to a 5:30 p.m. because of the excessive heat on Thursday but it was worth the wait for a Golden Eagles' squad that looked sharp in their season opener. Azusa Pacific, which beat the Golden Eagles, 5-1, last season in Azusa, had an 11-10 advantage in shots, but goalkeeper Adriana Maldonado made five saves for her first shutout of the season and the 17th of her Cal State LA career. Azusa Pacific goalkeeper Zoey Bauman made six saves for the Cougars, including a spectacular stop of a brilliant shot by Victoria Arredondo from point-blank range early in the second half.

The only goal of the game came late in the second half. McKenna Gleason sent a perfectly-placed pass to a sprinting Chaidez, who did a nice job immediately collecting the ball and then drilling a shot just inside the far post. She was a threat throughout the match and made good on the outstanding scoring opportunity. Cal State LA had a glorious opportunity to take the lead late in the first half, but a hard shot by Tatiana Zuvic hit the crossbar.

Cal State LA's defense held up masterfully against a potent Azusa Pacific attack. The Cougars were able to generate five corner kicks, but Cal State LA held firm on all of them. Defenders Valerie Mares, Caitlyn Esposito, Jazmin Smith and Zuvic were outstanding in front of Maldonado, who came up big when needed.

Arredondo, Chaidez and Holly Abdelkader all had two shots each for the Golden Eagles.

Cal State LA was winless in seven previous meetings with Azusa Pacific, which won the PacWest title last year and advanced to the second round of the NCAA playoffs. The Cougars are picked to win the conference again in a preseason poll of coaches.

Cal State LA will now continue its challenging early-season schedule with a game at Simon Fraser on Monday. The Golden Eagles will also face defending national champion Western Washington on Wednesday before returning home to host Fresno Pacific next Saturday, Sept. 9.