Riverside, Calif. - The men's soccer team suffered a 1-0 overtime loss to the University of Antelope Valley in tonight's Cal Pac match-up. The loss dropped the Golden Eagles to 4-2-1 in conference play (6-4-1 overall), while the Pioneers remain a perfect 7-0.
The match proved to be a defensive battle from start to finish, with each team limiting the other team's offensive chances. In the victory, the Pioneers finished with a total of six shots and two shots on goal, while the Golden Eagles had three shots with one shot on goal.
La Sierra was forced to play a man down for the majority of the match, when their leading scorer, Mingyu Wee, received a questionable red card just 15 minutes into the match. Nevertheless, the Golden Eagles continued to fight and nearly took a lead of their own on a header by Dakota Shelton, off of a crossing pass, that looked to be headed into the goal until a Pioneers defender cleared it away at the last moment.
Already a man down, La Sierra was forced to make a change in goal after goalkeeper Robert Rodriquez suffered an injury on a collision in the box late in the 2nd half. Irvin Alberto came off the bench to make a save in the final minutes of regulation that turned away a prime scoring opportunity for the Pioneers and eventually sent the game into overtime.
But just 6:52 into the overtime period, Homero Flores tapped in a rebound and secured the victory for Antelope Valley.
The Golden Eagles will now turn their sights to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Ariz.) and try to snap a two-match losing streak. The Eagles are currently 3-1 in Cal Pac play just behind the Golden Eagles in the South Division standings, having played three less matches than La Sierra to date. La Sierra will look to turn things around as they have lost their last four matches versus Embry-Riddle. The Golden Eagles will take on the Eagles on Sunday afternoon, at 1pm.
