Sophomore Kassandra Ceja put on a show in the last two home victories for Fresno State soccer.

The forward/midfielder recorded three goals and three assists for a total of six points in the Bulldogs’ games against Colorado State and Wyoming on Friday and Sunday, respectively. Her performance earned her the Mountain West player of the week award.  She ranks second in goals in conference plays with 3 total, and ranks first in assists, 3, and game-winning goals, 2, overall. 

The Fresno State Bulldogs defeated the Colorado State Rams 3-0 on Friday, Oct. 1, and the Wyoming Cowgirls 5-0 on Sunday, Oct. 2. 

“Just amazing, [Ceja’s] dangerous,” head coach Brian Zwaschka said. “She’s clever about getting herself into positions… and also her setup plays is really sharp, and she’s starting to reap the rewards.”

After defeating Wyoming, Ceja remained humble and shined the spotlight on her team for the win. She acknowledged the team’s rough start this season, but now feels confident in their team’s chemistry the rest of the season. 

“It’s a great feeling. I feel like the things that we’ve been working on have really started to come together,” Ceja said. 

After postponing the game from 12 to 4 p.m. due to bad air quality, the Bulldogs came out aggressive on defense against a Cowgirls offensive burst on Sunday.

In the first 12 minutes, Wyoming held the majority of the possession on Fresno State’s side. Although they were able to get two good shot attempts, the Cowgirls struggled to score due to the Bulldogs defense forcing both shots to be off target. 

The coaching staff and the team said patience is the key to their success, and all they had to do was wait for the right moment to attack. The right moment for the Bulldogs is when it’s in the possession of Ceja. 

After Bulldog forward Jordan Brown stole the ball from a Wyoming defender, she attacked inside the box and kicked it over the goalkeeper. Bouncing off the goalkeeper’s hand, Ceja recovered the ball and shot at the bottom right of the net, scoring Fresno State’s first points against Wyoming. Brown got the assist at 16:02 in the first half. 

“It’s a totally a team effort,” Zwaschka said. “Everybody contributes and that’s the expectation. When they look after each like they have done in the last couple of matches, that’s hopefully the­ result we get.”

After the first goal, the Bulldog offense could not be stopped the rest of the first half. In 20:48 minutes into the game, Wyoming received a yellow card near their own box to give Fresno State a free kick. A shot by Bulldog Bailee Kern was off target, but an out of bounds call on the Cowgirls gave the ‘Dogs a corner kick. 

After the corner kick, Brown again assisted to another Ceja goal 21:51 into the game. Brown was key for the offense as she kept attacking Wyoming’s defenders to steal the ball and create plays. A couple minutes later, Brown scored a goal of her own after Ceja spun around a defender for the assist. 

“I love every goal that we score, even if it’s not me,” Brown said. “I want us to be scoring and celebrating together, so it feels good to score, but I’m super glad that we had multiple goals for today. It’s all about the team.”

It was a high-scoring team effort the rest of the game. After another Fresno State goal from Kaelyn Miller, the Bulldogs were up 4-0 into the second half.

Although Wyoming totaled in 10 shot attempts, none of them connected with the net because of Fresno State’s lockdown defense. This is the second game in a row keeping their defenders scoreless.

Bulldog goalkeepers Valentina Vivas and Ella Wilson both recorded two saves for the game. Zwaschka said their goal is to defend better so the goalkeepers do not have to make those crucial saves, but he trusts them when it’s time for them to step up.

“So impressed by their readiness and just the composure and poise in those huge moments,” Zwaschka said. “Really proud of them.”

In the last five seconds of the game, Bulldogs Katie Dohnel shot the ball off target, but Sam Tristan recovered the ball to score Fresno State’s final goal of the game, winning 5-0 against Wyoming. 

The Bulldogs increased their Mountain West conferences record, 2-0-1, with two blowout victories, including a 3-0 win against Colorado State on Friday, Oct. 1.

The ‘Dogs travel to Logan next to play against Utah State on Friday, Oct. 8, at 3 p.m.