Women's soccer at 7,000 ft.

The CSUS women's soccer team headed south last weekend to begin Big Sky conference play, and unfortunately their winning ways went south too. The Hornets were unable to put a ball in the back of the net in a 3-0 loss to Northern Arizona University and a 2-0 loss to CSU, Northridge, digging themselves a tough hole to get out of.

It did not take long for NAU to pull the welcome mat out from under the Hornets' feet, with Holly Jones scoring at the 1:04 mark to take an early lead that they would never relinquish. Jones again scored in the 39th minute and the Lumberjacks took the 2-0 lead to half.

In the second half NAU came out with guns blazing once again and tallied the third goal of the game at the 45:21 mark, this time from Erin Rummens. The Hornets were able to hang tough the rest of the game despite several players suffering from fatigue. The 7,000 foot elevation had an adverse affect, with a few Hornets complaining of dizziness. Head coach Sandra Asimos did not want to blame the altitude for her team's performance, however. "The lack of oxygen took its toll. Did we rotate players a lot? You bet," she said. "But we need to be tougher. We go there again next year and it's not like it's going to change."

Things did not get much better for the Hornets on Sunday when they again were unable to finish and dropped the 2-0 decision to Northridge. The Hornets proved to be unlucky as they hit the crossbar early on, bad luck in a game where an early goal would have changed the entire complexion of the game. Northridge first got on the board in the 21st minute when Michelle French on the assist from Joanna Parker. Northridge's second goal came in the 75th minute from Rebecca Kiesz to finish the scoring for the game.

Asimos was not in the highest of spirits Sunday evening after returning from the long trip. However, she says all is not lost for the Hornets. "Yes, it is a disappointing weekend, but it isn't a useless weekend by any means," she said. "We need to learn from this and become stronger for it." The goal for the Hornets is to reach the Big Sky playoffs, which is still within reach, but there is not a lot of room for error. The conference is tough all the way across the board, but Asimos and the players are not deterred. "It's going to come down to who wants it more. Things such as pride and spirit will become very important," said Asimos.

In order to reach the playoffs, the Hornets cannot afford another scoreless weekend, but again this is something that Asimos is not overly concerned about. "We need an icebreaker. We need someone to put one away, then the goals will start flowing," she said.

The Hornets possess a 4-1 record at home this year, and hopefully will put it to good use Thursday as they play Idaho State squad.