SPOKANE, Wash.-- The CSU Bakersfield women's soccer team was unable to slow down Gonzaga's offense as the Roadrunners fell 3-1 Sunday afternoon. The 'Runners closed a tough, two-game road trip with a loss, but learned a valuable lesson.

“Today was a great test for us and, for parts of the game, we looked as though we could compete at this level,” said Gary Curneen, Head Coach of the 'Runners. “We were good in possession and created a number of chances. Unfortunately, if you miss those chances and concede soft goals, you won't win games and that was the difference.”

The first half remained relatively quiet with both teams cautiously feeling each other out. The 'Runners outshot Gonzaga 4-2 in the opening period despite the Bulldogs earning four corner kicks to Bakersfield's zero. Solid defense helped CSUB keep the Zags from setting up quality scoring chances.

Just 90 seconds into the second half, a foul in the 'Runner half of the field resulted in a set piece for Gonzaga. A deep ball slipped past the CSUB defenders and found the head of Aliyah Miller to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead.

In the 62nd minute, the Bulldogs bit again thanks to a nicely played ball into the box and a chip over Tori Ornela, CSUB's goalkeeper. Sydney Anderson provided the pass while Karley Baggerly put away her third goal of the season to make it 2-0 in favor of Gonzaga.

Four minutes later, Ornela scored the first goal of her collegiate career in a bizarre play. The redshirt senior goalie took a free kick near midfield and the high ball cleared the outstretched hand of Gonzaga's backpedaling keeper to make the score 2-1. The CSUB excitement was quickly quelled when Gonzaga responded right back with another goal. Baggerly sent a ball just inside the 18-yard box and Heather Johnson finished it to take a two-goal lead again.

Pressure by the 'Runners in the final minutes just missed forcing a Gonzaga own goal by two feet, but CSUB was unable to close the gap. Gonzaga (1-1-1) earned the 3-1 victory while Bakersfield gained valuable experience against a program ranked over 100 places higher in the RPI.

After the game, Curneen expressed an urgency for his young team to learn from the loss: “We are making a lot of progress as a program, but, we have to learn quick or this will be a familiar feeling at the end of games. That will be our focus in the upcoming days.”

CSU Bakersfield (1-1-1) returns home for a pair of matches next week. The Roadrunners will look to rebound against Sacramento State (0-3-0) Friday at 7 p.m. before hosting UC Riverside (2-2-0) Sunday night at 7 p.m. Tickets for both matches can be purchased at Vallitix.com.

~GoRunners.com~