At the end of the first half, it looked as though the Gator's women’s soccer team was continuing down the goal-less path it has traveled for much of this season.

But, with the help of senior Kate Donaldson, who assisted Robin Bowman early in the second half and scored on a penalty kick eight minutes later, the Gators (4-6-1, 3-3-1 CCAA) defeated visiting CSU Monterey 2-1 on Sunday.

Similar to many of the Gators’ matches, the team failed to score on its seven first half shots. The team has been kept scoreless in seven of its 11 matches this season, including its last five of seven, and coach Jack Hyde has made it a point for the team to focus on goal scoring.

“Today we needed to improve our stats,” said Hyde. “We had to create opportunities and finish.”

SF State did exactly that. In the second half, they wasted no time in scoring the first goal of the game less than five minutes in when Donaldson’s pass was headed into the net by Bowman. The Gators took command 2-0 58 minutes in when Donaldson beat Otter goalkeeper Stacey Senkle on a penalty kick.

SF State’s defense pressed on and kept the pressure on the Otters, allowing CSUMB (2-5-1, 1-5-1 CCAA) only two shots on target, including the goal by Kayla Franck 73 minutes in.

After that, the Gators’ defense buckled down and kept the game in their advantage until the end of regulation. Key goals and tough defense were credited to their win.

“We matched them one-for-one,” said Hyde. “We gave them a lot of pressure.”

Hyde gave credit in particular to forward Lissette Garay and midfield Whitney Downes for being tough on the Otters defensively. The Gators out shot the Otters 18-6.

The Gators start the second half of their eight-game home stand on Tuesday when they host Mesa State in a non-conference game.