The first quarter saw the Rams jump out to a 2-0 lead on goals by junior midfielder Mike Roth (3g, 1a) before Sonoma scored three straight times to take a lead that they would never relinquish. Sophomore Mike Napollili (3g, 3a) scored with 3:57 left in the quarter to tie the game at three. Both offences struggled early to get on track as everyone had trouble adjusting to the sloppy conditions.
Sonoma attempted to pull away in the second quarter as the field quickly began to deteriorate and they outscored CSU 3-1. Every ground-ball was a battle and face-offs degenerated into mud-wrestling wars as CSU and SSU stood toe to toe like heavyweight fighters. The third quarter saw the Rams midfield play its best game of the year scoring a combined 7 goals. Each time that SSU threatened to pull away, the Rams responded and kept the game in striking distance.
Sonoma led 9-6 before CSU outscored them 3-1 in the last half of the third quarter to pull within one. As the rain started to dump down on Rohnhert Park, the Rams and the Cossacks put on a terrific fourth quarter show for the large crowd in attendance. SSU’s Ryan Horn (4g, 2a) scored the winning goal with 2:31 left and the Cossacks withstood the barrage of numerous Ram shots to hold off the defending national champions.
The game was well officiated as the referees allowed the two best teams in the country to decide the game on the field. Also playing well for CSU were faceoff middies Pat Lambert and Andy Wolper, and goaltender Cale Vanvelkinburgh. Next up for the Rams, the only team to beat them in California last year, the fifth ranked California Golden Bears in Berkeley.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| CSU | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 12 |
| SSU | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 13 |