SAN BERNARDINO—The red-hot Chico State soccer team could not keep the momentum going in a 1-0 loss at Cal State San Bernardino in the opening round of the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament Tuesday afternoon in San Bernardino.
 
The host Coyotes, ranked No. 13 in the nation, scored in the 11^th minute and held on despite Chico State five second-half shots on goal.
 
Chico State will now await Wednesday's penultimate NCAA Super Region 4 rankings to see where it stood heading into Tuesday's affair, and will then learn its NCAA Championship Tournament fate Monday afternoon at 3:30 p.m.
 
Chico State's tournament resume includes a 12-5-0 record and road victory at Great Northwest Athletic Champion Western Washington University. But with Tuesday's loss, fell to 0-5 against the CCAA's top-four sides, including 0-2 against Cal State San Bernardino.
 
Chico State, which had not allowed a goal in its past four-and-a-half matches, suffered from a rare defensive lapse, leading to the lone goal of the match.
 
Jonathan Garcia took a pass from Juan Larios with his back to the goal, spun, and split two Chico State players about 35 yards out from the goal. He attacked with the dribble toward the top of the box. Cut inside to avoid another defender at the top of the 18 and move into the space created by Pedro Arellano on his run into the box. That, and the finish, proved to be the difference. Now into open space, Garcia ripped a left-footed shot back across his body that bounced under the left hand of the diving Chico State keeper, Jose Paredes, sneaking it inside the right post. Larios was credited with an assist.
 
Servando Higuera's long attempt was the Wildcats' lone shot of the opening stanza.
 
But Chico State's offense was much more dangerous in the second half. In the 56^th minute, Anthony Kaskie connected with Jacob Chong down the left flank, and with a step on the defense, Chong cut in side and took a promising shot from 10 yards out that was parried away.
 
The Wildcats again threatened to even things up in the 70^th minute. Chong made an aggressive run into the box before the ball was knocked away, deflecting back to the trailing Justin Bethke, who hammered a shot from the top of the 18-yard box that Coyotes Keeper Jacob Huber dove to get a touch on, deflecting it up and off the crossbar.