It was an electric day for Cougar men's soccer, as a huge crowd of current students, fans, and alumni cheered the team on to victory in the first annual Alumni Association Homecoming Game.  The team on the field matched the fans' energy, defeating UC Santa Cruz 2-0.

The win pushes CSUSM to 6-5 on the season.  It's the first loss of the season for Santa Cruz, the #5-ranked team in NCAA Division III, as they fall to 10-1-2 on the year.

With the festive atmosphere setting the backdrop, the Cougars took command of the game early and never let go.  In the 14th minute, a long ball was played down the middle of the field deep into the Santa Cruz zone.  Fighting off two defenders, Cougar forward Brandon Zuniga was able to get a touch on the ball at the top of the box, knocking it past the keeper a split second before the keeper could smother it.  The crowd exploded as the ball rolled past the goal line and into the net for the game's first goal.

"That goal inspired us, no doubt about it," commented CSUSM Head Coach Ron Pulvers.  "Brandon and Max [Blumenshine] caused a lot of problems up front all day."

From there, the Cougars would continue to generate chances, finally tallying another score in the 36th minute.  A blocked shot bounced out to Troy Skomra, who was at a sharp angle about 28 yards from the net.  But that didn't stop the Cougar senior, who launched an absolute rocket into the far upper corner of the goal, putting the home team up 2-0.

"Troy was terrific on the day," said Coach Ron Pulvers, referring to Skomra's many stops on defense to go along with the brilliant goal.

After losing a 2-0 lead in the second half at Biola, Coach Pulvers' squad did a strong job of holding onto it on Saturday.  The Cougars limited Santa Cruz's second-half chances, and hit two potentially game-finishing goals off the posts.  But in the end it didn't matter, as the horn sounded with CSUSM still up 2-0.

For Coach Pulvers, the win is sweet, but he knows his team will have to show even more to be successful in their push to the post-season.

"We weren't quite as sharp as I would have liked, but we were good enough to get the result," said Pulvers.  "I have to give Santa Cruz their due - this is their third game is six days, and they are a very good team."

The Cougar men will celebrate senior day this Wednesday when they host San Diego Christian in the team's final home game of the 2009 season.