Fresno State Athletics
2003: A Look Back
6/21/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
June 21, 2004
FRESNO, Calif.- Fresno State closed out the 2003 campaign with a 7-9-2 overall record and a 4-4-0 mark in WAC competition. Playing one of the toughest schedules in school history that featured five opponents ranked in the top-25, the Bulldogs also advanced to the WAC Tournament for the ninth consecutive season. Fresno State's 4-4-0 conference ledger signaled the third straight year with a record of .500 or higher in league play.
Despite their sub-.500 overall record, last year's young Bulldog squad chalked up some impressive highlights. In addition to qualifying for the WAC Tournament, Fresno State was almost perfect in home matches at 4-1-1 and re-established its reputation as one of the nation's top-watched programs by ranking third nationally in average match attendance. Also, Katri Nokso-Koivisto became the team's first All-WAC first team selection since 2000 and Kortney Lewis was named to the All-WAC second team after leading the club in starts, goals, points, shots and shots on goal.
The Bulldogs began the season in style, facing No. 25 Charlotte and No. 12 Tennessee in an East Coast weekend road trip. Fresno State got things started with a 3-1 upset of Charlotte in the season opener, representing just the fifth win in program history over a nationally-ranked team. Lisa Esteves, who had played in only 10 games through her first three seasons, scored the first two goals of her collegiate career in the win.
Fresno State carried some momentum into the weekend's final matchup against Tennessee, but the Lady Vols lived up to their reputation as a national powerhouse. The Bulldogs dropped a 3-1 decision after Tennessee scored two second-half goals following Eriko Yoshiki's penalty kick score to knot the game at 1-1.
The squad's home opener turned out to be a success, as Lewis and Nokso-Koivisto each scored and the Bulldogs held a 20-6 edge in shots during Fresno State's 2-0 shutout of Sacramento State.
Faced with an upcoming three-game road trip, the Bulldogs stood at 2-1-0 with a chance to improve their regional ranking against the likes of Pacific, Saint Mary's and No. 13 California. However, the three-game swing would translate into the following: tie, win, loss.
Fresno State battled back from a two-goal deficit against Pacific, but could not manage enough offense in two overtime periods to avoid its first tie since 1999. The 2-2 final score was the Bulldog's first draw since Oct. 22, 1999. Later in the week, the Bulldogs scored three goals within the first 50 minutes and played solid enough defensively to earn a 3-1 non-conference victory at Saint Mary's. Two days later, Fresno State failed to generate much offense against the nationally-ranked Golden Bears, which relied mainly on its defense in a 2-0 shutout of the Bulldogs.
After a span of 67 consecutive matches not resulting in a tie, Fresno State played to its second draw of the season in a home match against UC Riverside on Sept. 17 to start 3-2-2 overall.
The Bulldogs struggled offensively during the final four games of September, finishing the month 0-4 and getting outscored 12-1. The club dropped two hard-fought decisions at the Husky/Nike Invitational, falling 3-0 to host No. 14 Washington and 1-0 to 2002 national champion Portland.
The team was blanked 2-0 in its conference opener at UTEP one week later, then was defeated 6-1 by eventual WAC champion and NCAA Tournament representative SMU in Dallas.
When the calendar turned to October, the Bulldogs caught fire once again. Fresno State went 4-2 in six matches during the month, improving their record to 22-13-2 in October contests over the previous four seasons. More importantly, the late season surge helped the Bulldogs qualify for the conference tournament.
Fresno State returned home to Bulldog Stadium against Boise State on Oct. 3 looking to turn things around offensively. The Bulldogs did just that, notching a 5-2 victory over the Broncos to snap a four-match losing streak. Erin Sayegusa recorded a goal and two assists, while Barbara Davis notched two assists.
Later that weekend Fresno State shutout Nevada 3-0 in Reno, spurred on by two goals from Yoshiki. The Bulldogs recorded 27 shots in the victory, including a 15-1 edge in the first half.
The Bulldogs continued their offensive dominance one week later in a 7-1 rout of San Jose State at Bulldog Stadium, improving to 6-6-2 overall and 3-2-0 in WAC play. Just five days after equaling its highest single-game shot total in school history, Fresno State rattled off a single-game program record 34 shots against the Spartans. Nokso-Koivisto, Lewis and Sayegusa each scored twice and Koleen Anderson netted her first goal of the year in the victory. All eligible players saw playing time for Fresno State.
Fresno State was dealt a setback against Hawai'i, as Natasha Kai recorded her fourth hat trick of the season in the Rainbow Wahine's 3-0 shutout on Oct. 17 in Honolulu to snap the Bulldog's three-game winning streak.
The final homestand of the season yielded a split, as the Bulldogs entered the WAC Tournament as the No. 6 seed at 7-8-2 overall and 4-4-0 in league play. Fresno State secured a berth in the 2003 WAC Tournament with a 4-0 shutout of Tulsa to open the weekend. Four different players found the net and the 'Dogs registered a 20-3 edge in total shots against the Golden Hurricane.
The regular season finale turned out to be a bittersweet ending, as the Bulldogs missed out on a chance to improve its WAC Tournament seeding and dropped a 4-1 decision to Rice in front of a season-high 3,358 fans at Bulldog Stadium. Fresno State was bidding to finish the season unbeaten at home, something it had never accomplished. Fresno State's only score of the match came in the 60th minute, courtesy of Lewis.
Fresno State's struggles against Rice continued one week later at the 2004 WAC Tournament, as the Lady Owls tallied a 3-0 shutout in the opening round and eliminated the Bulldogs. Rice controlled possession throughout the match, outshooting the Bulldogs 15-5. Nokso-Koivisto recorded three of Fresno State's five shots.
