Long Beach State women’s soccer (5-6-4) salvaged a 1-1 tie against visiting UC Santa Barbara (10-3-4) at George Allen Field on Sunday, Oct. 19. 

The Big West leader in shots on goal this season with 28, junior forward Radisson Banks was in attack mode all game, finally cashing in a volley off the left post after a corner was cleared in the 73rd minute to tie the match. 

“Seeing that opportunity go in meant everything to me,” Banks said. “I’m a goal-scorer, so I’ve been putting a lot of pressure on myself to do that for our team.”

 After warming up in bright pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, The Beach (2-2-3 in Big West play) played with a sense of urgency from the beginning, looking like a team clawing to reach the conference tournament.

LBSU sophomore forward Kailey Supa battles for possession during Long Beach State’s match against UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 19 at George Allen Field. Diego Perez | Long Beach Current

 

Coming off a frustrating 1-0 loss to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on Thursday, Oct. 16, LBSU entered the game on the outside looking in to the top six schools who qualify for the Big West tournament, which starts on Nov. 2. 

The two teams went to halftime scoreless, but The Beach managed six shots, compared to just one from the Gauchos , who suffered their first defeat away from home on Thursday at the hands of UC Irvine.

Despite executing crisper passes and dominating the time of possession, the Beach could only stare as a header from sophomore midfielder Caitlyn Simons off a right side cross from senior forward Haley Phillips put UCSB ahead in the 52nd minute.

Knowing they were looking up at the Gauchos in the standings, falling behind did not deter the LBSU women as they kept threatening deep into the second half.

“It was one-way traffic the whole game, I’m very proud of my team,” head coach Mauricio Ingrassia said. “We fought through a lot of adversity, especially after going down one.”

 

LBSU sophomore forward Charlotte Luhr battles UC Santa Barbara midfielder Emma Corcoran for possession during Long Beach State’s 1-1 draw at George Allen Field on Oct. 19. Diego Perez | Long Beach Current

Banks’ breakthrough goal, her fourth of the season, was the culmination of many near misses. 

“We fought from minute 1 to minute 90,” Banks said. “Every point matters, we cannot control what the other teams do.”

The Beach outshot the Gauchos 19-5 in a clean game where only one yellow card was issued. 

Junior goalkeeper Aurora Schuck only had to save two shots for the Beach, and UCSB was awarded just three corner kicks, compared to eight for LBSU.

“It felt really good to get rewarded after dominating most of the game,” Ingrassia said. “We are definitely headed in the right direction.”

The Beach closes their three game homestand when UC San Diego, sitting one point behind them in the Big West standings, comes to visit on Thursday, Oct. 23, in the team’s final home game of the year.