SAN DIEGO – San Diego State freshman Leah Pruitt scored twice to help lift the Aztecs to a 4-0 victory over Nevada at a cloudy SDSU Sports Deck Sunday afternoon. The win was a season-high third in a row for San Diego State, which improved to 7-4 overall (3-1 MW). The Wolf Pack, meanwhile, fell to 3-7-2 (0-3-1 MW).

 

“I thought this was our most consistent performance we have had all year,” head coach Mike Friesen said. “We moved the ball really well and we created chances out of that and that was one of the great qualities of the game today. We came into the game looking to play as a group and create some momentum. I thought we did that, so we’re excited about where we’re at and what’s coming up.”

 

The Aztecs received the only goal it would need for the day in the 14^th minute when sophomore Angela Mitchell sprinted down the right sideline before cutting into the box. From there, the forward blasted a shot to the right of Nevada goalkeeper Kelsey Quintos, who put a hand on it, but the momentum carried the ball just past the goal line. The goal was Mitchell’s fourth of the year, which matched her total from a season ago when she was a true freshman.

 

After a relatively even opening 45 minutes, despite the SDSU goal, the tide turned in the Aztecs’ direction in the second half. San Diego State kept the ball in the attacking third from the outset and earned corner kick after corner kick. On the rare occasion Nevada would cross midfield, the Aztec backline routinely stole the ball and countered.

 

It was not until the 63^rd minute when the scoring picked up. Pruitt took a pass from junior Victoria Barba and put a well-placed diagonal shot past Quintos to double SDSU’s advantage. Then 10 minutes later, Pruitt was back at it again, knocking in her shot off a pass from Dani DeRosa. The two goals were a career-high for Pruitt and Barba’s assist was her second of the season after helping Milan Moses on her scoring sequence vs. UNLV on Friday. The assist, meanwhile, was DeRosa’s first point of the season.

 

DeRosa, the sophomore transfer from Louisiana, however, was not finished. She posted her first goal as an Aztec 11 seconds before the final horn sounded to provide the final margin. The assist was credited to freshman Taylor Russell, who entered the game seven minutes earlier. The point was Russell’s first of her young career.

 

SDSU, which did not allow a Nevada shot in the second half, wound up outshooting the Wolf Pack, 22-6, and had an 11-4 advantage in shots on goal. San Diego State also had nine corner kicks, including seven in the final 45 minutes, to Nevada’s zero.

 

Barba and Hedda Regefalk led SDSU with five shots apiece, while Pruitt had four with a team-best three on target. Goalkeeper Melanie Vaughn was outstanding again as she had four stops and recorded her third straight clean sheet. She also lowered her goals-against average to 0.83.

 

San Diego State, which is unbeaten in its last seven home games (6-0-1), has not allowed a goal in its last three outings and has outscored its opponents, 18-3, at home this year. The Aztecs will look to continue their recent run next Friday, Oct. 9, when Colorado State visits SDSU Sports Deck. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. PT start on the Mountain West Network (GoAztecs.com) and admission is free.