ROHNERT PARK -- Cal State LA's women's soccer team turned in a tremendous performance in a California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament semfinal win on Friday and the Golden Eagles are hoping for an encore showing on Sunday.
The No. 3 seed Golden Eagles upended No. 2 seed Stanislaus State, 1-0, to earn a spot in the CCAA Tournament championship match against No. 1 seed and tourney host Sonoma State on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Seawolf Soccer Field. Cal State LA (10-3-6) is making its first appearance in the championship game since 2016 and seeking its first tournament title since 2014.
While the women's team is making its sixth championship game appearance and Cal State LA's men's team will be making its eighth appearance on Sunday in San Bernardino, this year marks the first time that both Cal State LA programs will be in conference title games in the same season.
Cal State LA's opponent on Sunday, Sonoma State, shared the conference regular-season championship with Stanislaus State, with both teams finishing three points ahead of the third-place Golden Eagles. The Seawolves (12-3-3) are making their fifth consecutive trip to the tournament finals and their eighth overall.
The Golden Eagles will be making their sixth title game appearance and claimed tournament titles in 2014 and 2009. The six tournament title game appearances are the third-most all-time, behind only UC San Diego (13) and Sonoma State (8).
Cal State LA and Sonoma State will be facing each other for the sixth time in tournament action, but for the first time in the championship game. The Golden Eagles are 1-3-1 in the previous five meetings with a win in 2014 (3-0) and a tie (0-0) in a 2016 semifinal match that the Golden Eagles advanced from via penalty kicks. The Golden Eagles were eliminated by the Seawolves in the past three meetings (2-0 last year), 1-0 in overtime in 2018 and 2-0 in 2017.
The Golden Eagles did claim a 1-0 win in an NCAA Tournament match with Sonoma State in Rohnert Park in 2019.
Cal State LA posted a 2-1 victory over Sonoma State in the regular-season meeting between the two teams in Los Angeles on Oct. 14.
Liliana Gonzalez scored both Cal State LA goals, one in the fourth minute and the other in the 54th minute, while Sonoma State made it 2-1 with a goal from Lexi Zandonella-Arasa in the 59th minute. The Golden Eagles held onto their lead with a determined defensive effort and nine saves from CCAA Goalkeeper of the Year
Areli Reyes.
The Golden Eagles are coming off one of their best performances of the season in the 1-0 win over Stanislaus State on Friday.
Kaelah Basurto scored on a spectacular strike in the 68th minute and the Golden Eagles enjoyed a 17-6 edge in shots, including a 12-1 advantage in an outstanding second half.
In addition to the tournament title being on the line, the CCAA's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament is also up for grabs. The announcement of the NCAA tournament field will come on Monday at 4 p.m. on ncaa.com.
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