Cal State Fullerton sophomore Nikki McCants scored in the eighth minute of the contest and that was all the Titans needed Sunday afternoon as they shutout visiting CSU Bakersfield, 1-0, at Titan Stadium.

 

The victory snapped a two-match losing streak for Fullerton, which evened its mark at 7-7-2 overall heading into the final two weekends of Big West Conference play. The Roadrunners, meanwhile, lost their second-straight following a 3-1 loss to Seattle on Friday, falling to 3-11-1 overall on the season.

 

“This is a great result as we prepare ourselves heading into a very important stretch run in conference play,” Head Coach Demian Brown said. “We look forward to our game on Thursday with the hopes of propelling ourselves higher in the Big West standings.”

 

Sophomore Janali West, who had the Titans’ goal against UC Irvine on Friday night, tallied the game-winning assist on McCants’ score, sending a long ball up to her fellow sophomore, who stayed just onsides to play the ball and pushed one past a diving Kym Gause, who got a fingertip on it, in net for the 1-0 lead. It was the third point in the last five matches for West while McCants notched the sixth goal of her career and her first since a 3-2 win over New Mexico on Sept. 16 in Albuquerque.

 

Fullerton outshot Bakersfield, 16-8, for the match, including an 8-1 advantage in the first period; however, the Roadrunners were a lot more dangerous in the second half as Tyler Shirk almost turned a pair of miscues into a pair of goals.

 

The first came with just over 21 to play as she won a foot race to the ball with Titans’ keeper Lindsey Maricic just outside the box, but Maricic tipped it away from harm as the Fullerton defense cleared it away. The second came three minutes later as Shirk again got behind the defense, but a sliding challenge by Maricic stopped the rally and preserved the shutout.

 

Sophomore Kishi Smith finished with a match-high five shots while McCants and Kaitlyn Mendoza each put a pair on frame. Shirk and Jessica Fogeltanz each had two shots to lead the Roadrunners.

 

Cal State Fullerton, which was whistled for six offsides on the afternoon, also held a 7-1 advantage in corner kicks to help propel the offense.

 

With the non-conference schedule now complete, the Titans finish off Big West play with three of the final four matches at Titan Stadium beginning next Thursday (Oct. 20) at 6 p.m. against Cal State Northridge.