The Los Medanos College Mustangs women’s soccer team went toe to toe with the Chabot College Gladiators in a physical game that ended in a scoreless draw Tuesday night. Chabot started with the ball  at the outset of the game, and  took control, in the first few minutes pressing the Mustang defense and trying to expose  weakness.

However, the Mustangs responded with strength, and every time the Gladiators tried to break through they were met by LMC defenders. In the 15th minute of the game Chabot was able to make headway and try their chances of breaking the 0-0 tie, but LMC goalkeeper Norman Jara Ruiz had two impressive blocks that kept the momentum on the Mustangs’ side and kept the game scoreless.

With LMC showing a strong defense throughout the first half, and Chabot countering every offensive attack the Mustangs put in place, the game was physical. Both teams were getting close foul calls from the referee. One call that many in the crowd felt should’ve gone in a different direction was when sophomore co-captain Autumn Kish was clotheslined by Chabot’s goalkeeper in mid-flight attempting to head the ball. Instead she received the foul.

“Honestly, in my mind that shouldn’t have been a foul, and it was very physical after that, but I got up and kept playing,” said Kish

By the end of the first half the women held Chabot to 0 goals with defense as solid as a rock, but the Gladiators countered the Stangs, stifling their offense as well.

The game was a 0-0 tense tie at the end of the first half,  which was rough for the Mustangs, but they kept pushing through. After the game, sophomore captain Vanessa Kaulapai  said communication was key during the game.

“Communication was a strength I noticed during the game. We were all helping each other with positions and encouraging each other to push through the game and play hard,” said Kaulapai.

The Mustangs started with the ball in the second half , and came out with the same energy momentum they had in the first, trying to put pressure on the Chabot defense. The same could be said on the opposite side of the ball for Chabot as they put pressure on the LMC defense late but was met with a tough defensive wall that wasn’t going to let the Gladiators have a scoirng oppurtunity. With three more key stops from goalkeeper Ruiz, it was clear this was going to be a back-and-forth battle until the end.

As the game was coming to a close both teams were doing their best to score as the physical play continued on the field. The game ended in a 0-0 draw, yet there was a lot of confidence from everyone involved with the Los Medanos College Mustangs.

“We played very well for a new team that hasn’t played together before,” said defensive midfielder Sydney Torrano.

Head Coach Zach Sullivan noticed the improvement from last season.

“We are a lot better than where we started last year, and a lot deeper,” he said.“It’s a good first step, and we will have our full roster next week, so there is a lot more coming for next week that will help.”

At the end of the day the Stangs displayed an overall  positive team mindset  after a physical match-up with the Gladiators.

“We’re excited for game two, because we will have the full roster ready to play. This game made us excited for the rest of the season,” said Kaulapai  after the scoreless tie.

The team’s next game is against Skyline College in San Bruno Sept.5 at 4 p.m.

For more information on the LMC women’s soccer team visit http://www.losmedanos.edu/soccer .