Coming into the season, the Mustangs were picked to finish last in the coaches’ poll.
In Head Coach Oige Kennedy’s first season at the helm, the team surpassed those expectations, and the Mustangs finished the season in fifth place in the Big West.
The Mustangs got their first taste of the Big West playoffs in two years, but hopes of making a deeper run were erased after a 1-0 loss to UC Davis.
The Aggie bench stormed the field while the Mustangs looked on as the goal-scorer for UC Davis, Chase Tanon, backflipped in celebration.
The Mustangs (5-8-4, 3-3-3 Big West) were unable to put points on the board in their opening round 1-0 loss to UC Davis (8-7-3, 4-4-1 BW) on Wednesday, Nov. 1, putting an end to what had been a promising season.
The back-and-forth affair had little action until the 81st minute when Tanon, the sophomore Aggie midfielder, put UC Davis ahead in what would be the game-sealing goal.
Sophomore forward/winger Sean McTague landed the Mustangs’ only shot on goal, while junior forward Jackson Kestler, an All-Big West honorable mention, led the squad with three shot attempts.
The Mustangs’ junior goalkeeper, Gabe Penner, kept the game close by securing four saves but was unable to stop an 81st-minute goal by the Aggies.
The Mustangs made it to the Big West playoffs as the fifth seed following their 1-1 draw against CSU Bakersfield on Oct. 28.
The team was seeking their first appearance in the Big West semifinals since 2015, and the first appearance in the championships in the program’s history.
The Mustangs’ previous matchup against the Aggies in their Big West opener also ended in a 1-0 shutout loss. The Mustangs rebounded and scored conference wins against CSU Northridge, UC San Diego and CSU Fullerton, landing them in the playoffs.
The Mustangs will turn their attention to next season, while the Aggies move on to face CSU Fullerton in the semifinals.