ROHNERT PARK—Following 100 minutes of perhaps its best soccer of the season, the Chico State women's soccer team absorbed a stunning defeat at the hands of 25^th-ranked and top-seeded Sonoma State in the semifinals of the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament Friday in Rohnert Park.
 
Goalkeeper Emma Hofmann scored her first collegiate goal on a 95^th-minute penalty kick to stake Chico State to a 1-0 advantage in overtime. But Sonoma State scored twice in the first 2:02 of the second 10-minute overtime period to come from behind and win.
 
"I couldn't be prouder of them. I thought we had one of our best performances. Sometimes the ball just doesn't trickle in your way," Wildcats Head Coach Kim Sutton said. "A gritty, gutsy game and a really painful ending."
 
The Wildcats had allowed two goals in a match just once all season and were playing wonderful soccer. Heading into the final 10 minutes, they had out-shot the Seawolves (12-3-3) 15-7 and enjoyed edges of 6-2 in shots on goal and corner kicks.
 
They grabbed the lead in that first overtime period on Hofmann's PK after Emilia Kling was shoved down in the box on a corner kick. Hofmann stepped to the spot and ripped a shot into the right upper-90.
 
"She's amazing. We all believe in her so much," said Mackenzie Gill, who was honored with the CCAA Elite 13 Award earlier in the day for achieving the highest cumulative GPA among qualifying players at the championships site. "When she stepped up we all knew it was going in. I'm really proud of her."
 
Ten minutes from the CCAA title match, that chance suddenly slipped through the Wildcats' hands. Just 19 seconds into the final overtime period, Julia Pritchard unleashed a perfectly-place shot from 25 yards out that skimmed under the crossbar to knot the score a 1-1.
 
Two minutes later, the Wildcats were whistled for a foul in the box after a Sonoma State player took a tumble and the Seawolves scored the PK to take the lead for good.
 
Chico State's season ends at 9-5-5. The match marked the end of the marvelous collegiate careers of six Wildcats: Alexi Vontsolos, Kelli Litchfield, Hunter Casperson, Taylor Russell, Susanna Garcia, and Gill.
 
"I'm just so proud of our team. They're a young team and they grew a lot," Sutton said. "I really thought they were an outstanding team. It's just tough to beat an outstanding team like Sonoma State on their field twice."