LA JOLLA, Calif. - Despite finishing with just nine players due to a pair of red-card ejections, UC San Diego showed some true grit in making a 19th-minute Katie O'Laughlin goal stand up for a 1-0 defeat of rival Stanislaus State at Triton Soccer Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

With a second straight win to complete a season-long five-game homestand, UCSD improved to 6-3 overall and an even 2-2 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Stan State, the reigning West Region champion, dropped to 6-2-1 overall and 2-1-1 in league play.

UCSD earned a free kick on the right side nearing the midway point of the first half. Junior co-captain Kiera Bocchinosent the kick to the base of the far post, where O'Laughlin (Carlsbad/Pacific Ridge School) headed the ball back across the face of the goal and into the upper right corner. It was her team-leading fourth goal of 2015, all coming over the past four contests and a span of 10 days. The tally also ultimately gave her a second game-winner in as many matches. O'Laughlin celebrated her 20th birthday just this past Thursday and produced the decider in Friday night's win over Cal State East Bay. The assist was Bocchino's team-best third on the year.

Kelcie Brodsky made six saves for UCSD, picking up her third individual clean sheet of the season and 22nd of her career. Fellow senior Chelsea Lewandowski matched her six stops for the Warriors.

The Tritons really had to extend themselves to secure the full three points, as two yellow cards in quick succession netted freshman Megumi Barber (San Diego/Mt. Carmel HS) a red card at 39:03. Matters got that much more delicate when almost the identical thing happened to O'Laughlin late in the second half, two yellow cards within 3:06 of clock time sending her to the sideline. Both players will have to miss UCSD's next game.

The numerical advantage notwithstanding, Stanislaus State hardly looked the aggressor throughout any portion, and only held a narrow 16-14 edge in shots when the 90 minutes were up. Arguably their best chance to equalize came in the 88th, when 2014 CCAA Freshman of the Year Jade Poon's back-post header was met with a fingertip save by Brodsky diving to her right. The ball went out for a corner kick.

The Tritons had almost doubled their advantage two and a half minutes after their opener, when O'Laughlin got her head to a Maxia Espino (Chula Vista/Hilltop HS) cross, but Lewandowski barely tipped the ball over the crossbar for a corner kick. Then in the 25th, Jordyn McNutt (San Diego/University City HS) poked a soft, left-footed shot from around the edge of the six-yard box on the right side at the end of a scrum, only for a Warrior defender to clear off the goal line.

UCSD had lost three straight regular-season meetings with Stan State, 4-2 in La Jolla a year ago, 4-1 in Turlock in 2013, and 1-0 at home in 2012.

UCSD is on the road next weekend, playing at Cal State Dominguez Hills on Friday night, Oct. 2, and at defending CCAA champion Cal State L.A. on Sunday, Oct. 4.

#TritonsRising

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