Four games into Big West play, Cal Poly Men’s Soccer has already matched their conference win total of two from last season after defeating UC San Diego 3-1 on Sunday, Oct. 8, at Mustang Memorial Field.
The Mustangs (4-5-2, 2-1-1) and Tritons (2-8-3, 1-2-1) enter this game tied in points (four) in the Big West Standings.
Coming in, the Mustangs have found some positive momentum, winning their last match and tying their game prior to that.
It has been different for the Tritons, losing their last match and tying the one prior. The Tritons are trying to get back to the winning column, with their only win of league play being their first match.
The Mustangs are still without junior defender Zak Elbekraoui, who has shown to be a productive piece for the backline.
The game started off chippy, with three fouls occurring in the first 95 seconds from both teams.
In the 26th minute, sophomore forward Luke Schaefer substituted into the game. Six minutes later, Schaefer stole the ball from a Tritons defender and out-maneuvered the Triots goalie before scoring his third goal of the season.
In the 40th minute, UC San Diego sophomore defender Matthew Lin played a ball towards the middle of the field and just outside the 18-yard line, but the pass was redirected by freshman defender Parker Owens into the back of the Mustangs’ own net.
Going into the half, the game was tied at 1-1.
Overall, both teams appeared to be evenly matched, with the Mustangs having five shots and the Tritons having four.
The Mustangs’ fouling woes continue as the team had 10 fouls in the first half compared to the Tritons’ six.
The Mustangs commit the ninth most fouls in the country with 15 per game.
In the second half, the trend continued, with both teams subbing players in and out due to the high temperatures in the area.
In the 54th minute, graduate student defender Emory Rapaport received a yellow card for going too hard into a tackle, causing the opponent to fall into supplies on the sideline.
In the 59th minute, freshman midfielder Rylan Firouznam, who played as a defender, serviced the ball nicely into the 18-yard box from about 50 yards out, which took a touch off a Triton defender, but Schaefer was there to one-time the ball into the goal giving the Mustangs a 2-1 lead.
“Nothing felt different except we had more intensity this game with all the boys flying out in the field, which led me to two goals,” Schaefer said about his scores.
The defenders for the Mustangs were getting a lot more involved in the attack, which showed with Firouznam getting an assist for the team.
“The wide defenders are getting into the attack more,” Firouznam said. “We’re trying to push up the field more and get more crosses.”
In the 85th minute, the Mustangs had another yellow card. Firouznam went in too hard for a tackle, leading to the Tritons having a free kick five yards outside the 18-yard box, but luckily the ball went far.
The fouling did not stop there. Redshirt freshman defender Joaquin Torres received a yellow card when he grabbed the shirt, causing the opponent to fall.
In the 90th minute on a corner, the Tritons had a corner. To maximize their chance to equalize the game, the Tritons loaded their entire team into the box.
The Mustangs cleared the ball and junior forward Jackson Kestler’s had wide open field ahead of him. He dribbled the ball all the way down to the other side of the field and eventually kicked the ball into an open net, solidifying the Mustangs’ win.
The Mustangs committed fewer fouls in the second half (four total), but three of those were yellow cards, which could have ended in goals for the Tritons if they capitalized on the free kicks.
Notably, Schaefer finished both shots in the game, and Kestler finished one of three of his shots for the Mustangs. With the defenders getting more involved in the attack, Rapaport had two shots, with one being on goal.
With the win over the Tritons, the Mustangs are sitting in a three-way tie for second place in the Big West, and the Tritons fell to a three-way tie for 3rd to last place.
The Mustangs are looking to continue the momentum into their next game on Wednesday, Oct. 11, at 4 p.m. in Sacramento against Sacramento State.
On Sunday, Oct. 15, the Blue-Green Rivalry will continue at 5 p.m. at Mustang Memorial Field against UC Santa Barbara.