LA JOLLA, Calif. — The San Francisco State women's soccer team has seen some tough breaks this season. The Gators' first two losses came in overtime and in the final five minutes of regulation. On Friday night, the Gators had another tough loss, 1-0 at No. 7 UC San Diego.

This time, the goal came earlier, in the 49th minute. SF State was whistled for a hand ball, which set up the penalty kick for Elisa Martinez, who scored into the upper right corner.

"It's unfortunate to have a technicality decide the game, but soccer can be a cruel sport," said SF State Head Coach Tracy Hamm.

Outside of the hand ball, the Gators put their No. 10 nationally-ranked defense on display. Despite being outshot 25-11, SF State (7-3-1/2-2-1 CCAA) fended off the nationally-ranked Tritons (11-2/8-0 CCAA). SF State goalkeeper Christina Holguin made a career-high seven saves. The goal allowed was just her second of the season, the other came in a 1-0 loss at Chico State.

UCSD, which has now won 22 consecutive conference matches dating back to 2015, took the first six shots of the match before Tami Kwong, coming off of CCAA Women's Soccer Player of the Week honors, had her shot saved by the Tritons defense in the 23rd minute. Vanessa Penuna's shot in the 41st minute sailed wide and the two teams headed into halftime scoreless.

"Our backline shut down some very quality players and we were able to create some fantastic chances in the attack. Our midfield did a great job maintaining possession and building out of the back against a fairly direct opponent," added Hamm. "We played our game and I'm proud of our performance, despite the loss."

The Gators will look to make up some ground in the standings on Sunday, Oct. 8 when they head to fourth-place Cal State San Marcos (6-5-0/4-3-0 CCAA).