SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Cal State Fullerton women's soccer team will play for a Big West Conference Regular Season Championship on Sunday after remaining undefeated in league play with a 4-2 victory over UC Santa Barbara on Thursday night at Harder Stadium.
The Titans (7-7-4, 5-0-2 Big West) are now first in the Big West standings with 17 points, while Cal Poly sits in second with 15 points. Cal State Fullerton, the defending 2013 Big West Tournament champion, and Cal Poly, the 2013 Big West Regular Season champion, will play for the 2014 title at 2 p.m., Sunday at Titan Stadium, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3.
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Junior Christina Burkenroad led the Titans to victory with a two-goal performance – her first multiple-goal game of the year, while freshman Connie Caliz and sophomore Serena Smith-Banas also found the back of the net for Fullerton.
It was Caliz who scored first in the 16th mound as she recovered Amanda Howard's shot that ricocheted off the crossbar and converted the rebound.
But UC Santa Barbara (8-9-2, 2-6-0 Big West), playing its final game of the season, evened the game in the 21st minute as Sydney Fuertes scored courtesy of Geneve Dromensk's corner kick.
Lauren Stupin's cross set up Burkenroad's first goal of the game as the Titans reclaimed the lead, 2-1, with less than two minutes left until halftime.
UCSB's Dakota Griggs scored her third goal of the season in the 56th minute to even the game at 2-2 as she powered a right-footed shot off Sara Feder's cross past Cal State Fullerton goalkeeper Jennifer Stuart.
But the central defense combination of Morgan Batcheller and Smith-Banas put the Titans ahead for good with the game winner in the 65th minute. Batcheller's free kick found an open Smith-Banas who was able to score on the Gauchos' goalkeeper Beth Ritter.
Burkenroad provided the insurance goal in the 77th minute sprinting down the field and aiming a 12-yard shot past Ritter unassisted. For the San Diego, native, it was her third goal of the year.
UCSB outshot the Titans 11-9 and Stuart made one save in goal. Jacq Caginia allowed two goals for the Gauchos in the first half.
In the regular season finale at Titan Stadium on Sunday,the Titans will honor their 2014 senior class prior to the game and following the match, the Cal State Fullerton women's soccer team will be available for autographs.
The Big West Tournament, scheduled to begin Thursday, Nov. 6, in San Luis Obispo will include Cal State Fullerton, Cal Poly, Long Beach State and CSUN with seeding still to be determined based on Sunday's results.
Notes: A tie or win on Sunday would garner Cal State Fullerton its seventh Big West Conference regular season championship…the Titans' four goals matched a season high, and CSF scored its most goals in a Big West games since a 4-1 victory at Pacific on Oct. 28, 2012…the Titans have scored 24 goals this season by 11 different players as Serena Smith-Banas recorded her first score of the year…Fullerton is an undefeated 6-0 when scoring the first goal of the game…the Titans have recorded five multiple-goal games this season…Cal State Fullerton leads the all-time series with UCSB, 13-9-1, including a 6-3-1 edge on the road…in regulation, CSF has outscored opponents 24-13...the Titans are unbeaten in their last seven matches (5-0-2), their longest undefeated streak since producing an 11-match winning streak from Oct. 7-Nov. 13, 2005…Fullerton is also on a four-match winning streak, the longest for the program since producing a four-match winning streak from Sept. 30-Oct. 14, 2012.