Box Score Less than 24 hours after falling in its season opener, the Cougar men's soccer team recorded its first win of the season, a solid 2-0 victory at Pomona Pitzer.
CSUSM improves to 1-1 on the season, while Pomona Pitzer, a member of NCAA Division III and last year's regular season SCIAC Conference champion, falls to 0-1.
The Cougars had control of the game from the start, rarely allowing opportunities while generating plenty of their own. A scoreless first half was quickly remedied in the 48th minute, when Jake Kaiser set up Dan Sims, who launched a bomb from 35 yards out that took a deflection en route to finding the back of the net.
CSUSM got the clincher in the 73rd minute, as Cary Cousineau played a nice through ball to Panos Kotselas, who served it across the face of the net to connect with Max Blumenshine. Blumenshine knocked it off the crossbar, but it bounced off a trailing defender and into the net.
The lightning-fast break is a sign of what this year's Cougar team is capable of, and a hint that it may have a quick strike ability that previous squads have generally lacked.
For CSUSM Head Coach Ron Pulvers, the game was a marked improvement from last night's effort against Vanguard, which resulted in a 2-0 loss.
"Tonight was a more spirited, more committed effort," commented Pulvers. "There were still moments of flatness, but the team was deserving of the result."
CSUSM will be traveling to Embry-Riddle in Arizona for games against Oklahoma Christian and Mid-American Nazarene on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
