CHICO – The weather was just as hot as the matchup. The Chico State men’s soccer team, ranked 14th in the nation, squared off against No. 20 Sonoma State in 103 degree heat Friday afternoon at University Soccer Stadium, and a pair of free kick goals by Trevor Hurst provided the lone scores as the visiting Seawolves blanked the Wildcats 2-0 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) conference opener for both clubs.

With Friday’s rare home loss, Chico State falls to 1-1-1 on the season and 0-1 in the CCAA, while the Seawolves improve to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play.

The Seawolves opened the scoring in the first period – after Chico State’s Mike Janjigian was assessed a yellow card in the 33rd minute, Hurst connected on a free kick from 30 yards out, curling his kick from the left side of the goal and bouncing it past Wildcat goalkeeper Sam Evans inside the far post to give Sonoma State the lead.

Chico State had several opportunities to knot up the contest early in the second half, but a pair of shots by both Ferid Celosmanovic and Tyson Crim missed their mark. Sonoma State went up 2-0 in the 60th minute when Hurst’s free kick curled a shot from 25 yards out inside the near post. The Wildcats weren’t able to get off many high percentage shots down the stretch, and the Seawolves ran out the clock to post the 2-0 victory.

Chico State outshot the Seawolves 17-15, with Sonoma State besting the ’Cats in corner kicks 5-2.

BOX SCORE

The Wildcats are back in action Sunday, traveling to Turlock to take on Cal State Stanislaus. The match is slated to start at 2 p.m.