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LA JOLLA — The Warriors are like the St. Louis Cardinals this season. Like the World Series Champs, the Cal State Stanislaus women's soccer team qualified for the postseason on the final day of regular season play.

That was back on Oct. 30. A win over Humboldt State and a Sonoma State loss to Chico State gave Cal State Stanislaus postseason life and its second consecutive “trip” to the conference tournament.
 
Now, here they are less than two weeks later, preparing for their first ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The 24th ranked Warriors' opponent at 7 p.m. on Friday is very familiar to them — Chico State. It will be the fourth time these two teams will lace up and dual this season. Stanislaus is 2-0-1 in three previous meetings in 2011.
 
On that day before Halloween, the Warriors spooked Humboldt State with an amazing display of offense, coupled by a determined defensive unit, with a 5-0 victory in Arcata on finale Sunday. Then they had to wait for the result from Rohnert Park as the group of women with their coaches hit the long winding road out of Humboldt County.
 
When Chico State edged Sonoma State, 2-1, late in their match ending the Seawolves' season, the Warriors were in a blind spot in the woods without cell reception.
 
But when they got out of the Redwood Curtain, the news got to them. They were in! And they celebrated on the Happy Bus (the Division II version of the Happy Flight for the Cardinals).
 
Last Friday, playing in front of the most-supportive home crowd in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (the Warrior led the CCAA in attendance for the third year, averaging more than 800 fans), the Warriors upset No. 7 ranked UC San Diego, 2-1, in the CCAA semifinals.
 
The UC San Diego Tritons had allowed just four goals all season entering the postseason. The Warriors scored twice — a cross that bent in for a goal by senior Liz Scherrer and the signature breakaway goal by their dynamic forward Karenee Demery — in the first half for a 2-0 lead. The goals came against the conference's defensive player of the year in UCSD goalie Kristin Armstrong.
 
UC San Diego managed a goal late in the match after Stanislaus goalkeeper Millie Brown and the defense shutdown the second-best offense in the league for 85 minutes. The Warriors have the most prolific offense in the CCAA. The conference champions now lead the CCAA with 2.10 goals, 2.35 assists and 6.55 points per game.
 
That was the program's first postseason win. They had lost in the semifinals a year ago to Cal State L.A. in overtime.
 
Then came Championship Sunday. As the student-athletes arrive Warrior Stadium, they saw the transformation of their home field overnight. Television crews had completed their pregame work with scissor lifts, cameras (five of them in all), equipment and satellite trucks parked on Geer Road preparing to television their championship match on TV.
 
There were men in suits and one of them in full-cowboy fashion (former MLS star Troy Dayak, who was the color analyst) interviewing coaches and getting talking-points for the first soccer match to be televised from Warrior Stadium.
 
There was a sense of excitement among the Warriors. “People are going to be watching us. We are going to be on TV!” A Warrior shouted.
 
Aside from the 1400-plus at the Stadium, the Warriors were watched by viewers across Northern California on Comcast or all-over the world on live streaming video. Warrior fans watched from as far away as Italy and Egypt.  And they saw a show.
 
Demery, “lightning in a bottle,” as Dayak refered to the sophomore sensation repeatedly, scored a hat trick. All of the goals would have made ESPN's Top Plays if they were paying attention. Alisa Barlow added a header goal and senior Marissa Dunaway led with three assists as the Warriors dominated to grab the CCAA crown in a 4-0 win over Chico State.
 
"This is a special day for Cal State Stanislaus, our players, and all of our alumni," CSUS head coach Gabriel Bolton said after the win. "I told the team today before the game we were playing for everyone on our team and everyone that came before them. There is no doubt in my mind we made them proud today."
 
“It was four years in the making for me and five for (Vanessa Cervantes),” Dunaway said of the championship.
 
The CCAA championship is the women's soccer's first and Cal State Stanislaus' fifth since joining the conference in 1998. Softball won in 2006 and men's golf owns three CCAA titles.
 
The Warriors became instant celebrities on campus and in the community. Congratulations and high-fives were tossed at them on campus and in classes. Bolton even had strangers jogging by, and the checkout clerks at nearby stores, congratulating him.
 
A standing-room only crowd gathered at the Warrior Grill inside the University's student union on Wednesday when the replay of the title match was shown.
 
The Warriors arrive La Jolla Wednesday evening to prepare for another first: their first NCAA Championship match. But not much else is new. They are playing Chico State, again. They are at conference school UC San Diego's Triton Soccer Stadium, a familiar site to all except the freshmen (UC San Diego played at Turlock during the regular season).
 
"Chico is going to be motivated to play us after the way we beat them in the championship game," Bolton said. "They're a good opponent but we enter with confidence, knowing we've beat them in the past."
 
In case you are wondering, being on the road doesn't really bother them. The road Warriors are 5-1-3 this season away from home with a 20-7 scoring advantage.
 
Cal State Stanislaus has complemented its prolific offense with a stellar defense. The Warriors have not allowed a goal in the last 319 minutes of game action. In fact, only  four goals have been scored on them over the last nine contests. They scored 22 and are 6-1-2 during that stretch.
 
"A month ago we made a commitment as a team that we were going to be a great defensive team. To win (the championship) and win with a shutout was special," said Bolton.
 
Chico State will have a lot of play for. Revenge. Pride. There is a lot of history between the Warriors and the Wildcats, not only the long-time rivalry but just within this season. The Warriors went 1-0-1 against Chico during the regular season. In addition it was Chico State that helped the Warriors get into the CCAA tournament in the first place. Then the Warriors kicked the Wildcats around for the CCAA title.
 
Here they are again, paired-up in the first round of the NCAA West Regionals. Only one team moves on to play top-seed, and host, UC San Diego on Sunday.
 
And hopefully for the Warriors, there will be another Happy Bus ride back up the state.