Despite a 1-3 record on the season entering Wednesday's contest, the Cougar men's soccer team knew they were playing better ball than last season. Coming off a heartbreaking loss to UCSD in which the Cougars allowed two goals in the final five minutes, Coach Ron Pulvers' squad just needed to find a way to break through.

On Wednesday, the Cougars broke through.

CSUSM stunned #7 ranked and defending national champion Azusa Pacific, 1- 0, in front of the largest crowd of the season at Mangrum Track & Soccer Field. Junior Michael Nuovo's brilliant 68th minute goal proved the difference, as CSUSM withstood a late rush by APU to hang on to the enormous win.

Ironically, the two factors that may have contributed most to the win were perceived as setbacks at the time: Friday's loss to UCSD, and a missed penalty kick.

“Today was Friday, but with the result,” commented Coach Pulvers. “Without Friday, we don't get this result. We learned the lessons we needed to learn, and we executed them today.”

Wednesday provided the Cougars a chance to exorcise the demons that have been holding the squad back thus far. On Friday, the issue was finishing games; today, CSUSM withstood a barrage of late-game chances from one of the top ranked teams in the nation. Throughout the season, the Cougars have struggled mightily against set-pieces. Today, Azusa Pacific attempted 9 corner kicks against the Cougars, and came up empty-handed.

The missed penalty kick occurred in the 65th minute. With the game tight, speedy forward Brandon Zuniga was taken down in the box, giving CSUSM a penalty kick and a golden opportunity to break the scoreless tie. But Christian Soares' shot was stopped cleanly by APU keeper James Crawford, providing what looked like a stomach punch to the hopes of the Cougars and their fans.

“When a penalty is stopped, it's usually a backbreaker,” noted Pulvers.

But once again, CSUSM showed remarkable resilience. Rather than folding, the Cougars ramped up the pressure another notch, creating a couple more chances. Finally, just three minutes after the missed PK, a loose ball found the foot of Michael Nuovo. The junior wasted little time in hitting a left-footed screamer from 25 yards out that rocketed past the entire defense and into the back of the net.

“That was a world-class goal,” said Pulvers. “And it's not the first time Mike has done it.”

When the final whistle sounded after what seemed like the longest four minutes of stoppage time ever, the Cougar fans erupted with cheers, and the victorious home team celebrated the huge win.

Now 2-3 on the season, the Cougars' prospects are certainly looking up. They'll look to maintain the momentum and avoid a letdown on Saturday at home against Kansas Wesleyan.