SAN DIEGO - The California lacrosse team (1-0) opened its 2026 season with a 13-12 road victory over San Diego State (0-1) in a nonconference game on Friday evening in front of a school-record 1,317 fans at Snapdragon Stadium.

Maddie Willkomm's first career goal with 6:01 remaining was the game-winner and the final score in a contest that neither team ever led by more than two goals. The back-and-forth game featured nine ties and four lead changes with Willkomm's unassisted goal accounting for the last lead change after Avery Hoeft had tied the game for the ninth and final time on an assist from Courtney Wong with 8:45 to go.

"What a night to start the season," Wong said. "This game was the definition of 'it takes all of us'. We were connected up and down the field from each position, and it was evident that every person on the team had each other's back. I'm so beyond proud of this group, and we're going to use this momentum to prepare for USC on Sunday."

Emily Moes led nine different Golden Bears' goal scorers by tallying each of the team's first three, while Wong had a two, as well as a career-high four assists for a career-high-tying six points. In addition, Wong posted a career and game-high seven draw controls. Josie Lillquist also had a pair of Cal goals, while Katie Bloomer, Clara Page, Ashleigh Masterson, Avery Hoeft, Katie McMullen and Willkomm picked up one each. The goals for Masterson and McMullen were also the first of their collegiate careers. Hoeft and Alina Hsu added two assists each.

"It was awesome to get out on the field as a team and show everything we've been working on in the preseason," Moes said. "The many goal scorers we had tonight is just the start of the possibilities of success for this team this year because we have so many talented players, both returnees and freshmen. The entire field defense to offense felt connected, and we fought through all of our mistakes together to get the win. I'm looking forward to Sunday."

Lulu Murphy had 14 saves in her collegiate debut with the final one coming from Keira Doyle-Odenbach at nearly point-blank range with 1:00 on the clock.

"I couldn't do it without our defense, so all of the credit goes to them and the trust we have in each other," Murphy said. "They put me in the best position and let me see the savable shots. I love playing with these girls every day, and it's my teammates that keep me going. It was huge to open the season with a win. It was a total team effort."

The victory was Cal's fourth in a row to open a season dating back to 2023 and kept fourth-year head coach Jennifer Wong unbeaten in season openers with the Bears.

"Winning the opener against San Diego State was an important step for us, especially getting to play in an amazing environment like Snapdragon Stadium," Jennifer Wong said about the game played at the same venue that hosts the Aztecs' football team and other large-scale events. "Game one always has its ups and downs, but I thought we responded well and made big plays when we needed them most. Our returners did a great job setting the tone early, and it was great to see our freshmen step up in some key moments. It gives us a lot of excitement as we look ahead to the rest of the season."

The Bears will next visit USC in the Trojans' season-opener at Rawlinson Stadium on Sunday (12 pm PT). The game will be televised live on Big Ten Plus.