Historic Women’s Soccer Season Suffers Heartbreaking 2-1 Loss in State Championship Semifinal

By Kyra Young

kyrajyoung@gmail.com

The No. 4 in the nation Rams women’s soccer season came to a heartbreaking end on Friday, Dec. 8, with a 2-1 loss to No. 1 Cypress College. The California Community College Athletic Association (3C2A) State Championship semifinal was hosted at American River College in Sacramento.

“This season was pretty remarkable,” coach Jeff Wilson said. “Everyone left it on the field, which is something to be proud of.”

Despite the fall, the Rams finished their season strong with an overall record of 17-3-3 and a Coast Conference record of 8-1-2. City College secured the No. 1 rank for the Coast-North Conference and placed fourth in the nation for the United Soccer Coaches' national JUCO Division III rankings

“(It was) the highest finish this school’s program has ever had,” Wilson said.

In their 2024 season, the Rams defeated six schools ranked in the top 20 of the final 2024 national rankings. They also earned their 10th Coast Conference title in their return to the 3C2A Final Four – the team’s first state championship appearance since 2013 and third in the program’s history.

The semifinal match versus Cypress (21-2-3 overall) took off fast and fierce, with all three goals for the match scored in the first 24 minutes. The Chargers took the lead off a free kick in the thirteenth minute, putting Cypress ahead 1-0. Only three minutes later, Cypress’s Amber Mielke doubled the lead with an assist from Itzel Ramirez, for a 2-0 lead over the Rams.

But City College swiftly responded in the 24th minute with an unassisted goal from sophomore forward Paige Pineda-Aliamus, bringing the score to 2-1. For the remainder of the game, the teams held each other scoreless.

“I would say we were the more aggressive team the first 15 minutes,” Wilson said. “Then they got their free kick, and then a few minutes later we made a mistake we haven’t made all year and they scored another – even though we had controlled the ball a lot more than them and really not allowed them to get out of their half.

“They had that momentum, but Paige went and scored one for us and then we had all the momentum, but we just couldn’t put another one in.”

The remainder of the game took a defensive focus of play, with each team managing only seven shots on goal. Pineda-Aliamus’s final attempt in the last few minutes of the second half could have tied up the game but ricocheted off the crossbar.

Cypress, ranked No. 1 in the nation with United Soccer Coaches for JUCO D-III, had prior experience with such a battleground. Their semi-final win last season advanced them to the state championship, where they eventually lost 2-1 to Folsom Lake College on Dec. 8.

Wilson acknowledged that Cypress’s previous experience with the big semifinal pitch may have given them a slight advantage, whereas some of the Rams’ mindsets faltered.

“Some of their players were a little bit more conditioned for the moment, whereas I think some of our players might have let their emotions get the best of them and didn’t play with the calmness they had shown throughout the season,” Wilson said. “That was the true difference I saw this game.”

A large turnout in the stands brought friends, family, fans and around 40 college coaches scouting the field. A lack of City College administration at the event, however, did not go unnoticed by Wilson.

“It was a bit of a bummer – the women deserve the credit,” Wilson said, with a nod to the Rams’ many accomplishments this season, making it notably significant. “They deserve to be recognized for all their hard work, and when you don’t see that type of support from an institution, I’d say it’s a little heartfelt for sure.”

Pineda-Aliamus expressed a similar sentiment in a post-game reflection. “When we made it to the Final Four, my coach on game day was upset because no City College administration was there for the women’s soccer game. All the other administrators for other schools were there, but not ours,” she said, hoping for an increase in administrator representation, support and advocacy for the women’s soccer team moving forward.

In addition to their regional, state and national rankings as a team, a myriad of individual accolades are continuing to pour in.

Pineda-Aliamus and Arpan Bahia, two of four captains for the squad, have been honored on the U.S. Soccer All-America First Team as well as the 3C2A North All-Region and All-State teams. Pineda-Aliamus has been honored as Coast-North Conference Player of the Year, while Bahia, a sophomore, earned the Coast-North Conference’s Defender of the Year.

Sydney Grundland Lanuza, a midfielder for the team, was honored as the Coast-North Conference’s Freshman of the Year.

Seven players were selected for the Coast-North Conference’s first team: Bahia, Pineda-Aliamus, Grundland Lanuza, Carmen Hinton, Nare Avetian, Nadia Barron Santiago and Daniela Del Carlo.

Four players were selected for the Coast-North Conference’s second team: Bailey Perales, Kendall Carr, Rhiana Gardon and Chelsea Sandoval. The Coast-North Conference also gave honorable mention to Emma Glynn, Roisin Glynn, Anahi Gomez and Ashley Rabara.

Wilson was honored as Coast-North Conference’s Coach of the Year for the fourth time in his eight-year tenure at City College after leading the Rams to their 10th Coast Conference Championship.

Looking ahead, Wilson hopes to continue the momentum.

“Last year we lost in the Elite Eight, this year making it to the Final Four, and I just sense a kind of desire for the returning players to keep pushing the program – which I think is very exciting.”