Box Score It was a triumphant day for the young Cougar men's soccer team, as the squad came out on fire against Point Loma, and held on to win 3-1 in front of a huge home crowd.
CSUSM evens its record at 3-3-1. Point Loma falls to 2-3.
The Cougars have played with great energy and tenacity in most of their efforts this season, and Wednesday was no different. Cheered on by stands full of people at Mangrum Field, the Cougars took it to Point Loma right off the bat, dominating play early on.
It paid off in the 24th minute, when Richie Kaiser collected a ball on the counter-attack. Smartly opting not to pass to a teammate who was offside, Kaiser split the Sea Lions' defense, carrying the ball from one end of the pitch to the other while fending off the defense. Finding open space about 20 yards in front of net, he let loose an absolute missile that found the back of the net to put CSUSM up 1-0.
Less than four minutes later, the Cougars would double that lead. Off an attack, Sterling Petersen played a ball in that was touched by not controlled by the Point Loma keeper. Martin Suarez alertly tapped it away from him, and calmly slid a shot into the back of the net to put CSUSM up 2-0.
But Point Loma proved resilient, and as CSUSM appeared to relax just a bit to start the second half, the Sea Lions capitalized with a furious rush of their own. It started with a goal in the 66th minute, as Joaquin Hernandez headed in a free kick off the foot of Macaine Pearcy. Point Loma would control roughly the next 20 minutes of play, generating dangerous opportunities that created nervous moments for the fans and team alike.
In the end, however, it was team captain Bradley Seidenglanz who sealed the match. With Point Loma committing heavy numbers to the attack, Tyler Spitznagel found a ball in midfield, and played it high over the top. Seidenglanz ran under it, and with the keeper charging hard to make a play on it, Seidenglanz coolly tapped the ball up in the air and towards the open net. A retreating Point Loma defender was unable to do anything but watch it cross the goal line, putting CSUSM up 3-1 and effectively ending the contest.
The Cougars will be in action again at home this Saturday, facing another tough opponent in Biola University.
