SAN DIEGO – Down by a goal in the second half, UC San Diego scored twice – including the game-winner on a penalty kick in the 67th minute – as the Tritons rallied for a 2-1 men's soccer victory at cross-town foe San Diego on Wednesday night. The victory was UC San Diego's second straight, improving the Tritons to 3-4-0 on the season.
The Toreros fell to 1-8-0.
HOW IT HAPPENED
In the 10th minute, UC San Diego's
Omar Sabbagh had a shot that was blocked but he corralled the loose ball and had a great look at the net – but the Toreros made the save to keep the match scoreless.
About 10 minutes later, in the 21st minute,
Alessandro Allen had a great scoring chance for the Tritons, but the USD keeper made the save in the center of the net.
It was a physical first half, with the two sides combining for three yellow cards and 14 fouls. UC San Diego out-shot the Toreros, 7-5, but neither team was able to score.
In the second half, the Toreros created a scoring chance in the 52' but
Jake Serpa cleared it out of harm's way to keep the match scoreless. But San Diego got on the board in the 53' when Luke Pardoe fired a shot from the corner of the 18 that deflected off the goal post and into the net to put the Toreros on top, one-nil.
It wouldn't stay that way for long. In the 58th minute, the Tritons drew a corner kick. USD was able to briefly clear it away before the Tritons regained possession. Allen fed it into the box to
Nick Cirrito, whose airborne half-volley beat the Toreros' keeper to level the match at 1-1.
In the 67',
Jota Yamaguchi drew a foul inside the box, leading to a Toreros' yellow card and a penalty kick for the Tritons.
Cooper Lachenbruch took the PK and scored with a shot low and to the right to give the Tritons a 2-1 advantage.
The UC San Diego defense held firm and the Tritons won their second straight road match.
QUOTABLE
"Our effort was good and this was the most complete game we've played," said UC San Diego head coach
Jon Pascale. "This game was a real challenge. To go down [a goal] in the second half and battle back the way we did says a lot about who we are."
TRITON TIDBITS
- Cirrito's goal was his team-leading third of the season.
- Lachenbruch is the third different Triton to post a game-winning goal this season, joining Mason Haubrich (Sept. 3) and Omar Sabbagh (Sept. 16).
- Wednesday evening's match was the first between UC San Diego and USD since the Tritons played as an NCAA Division III institution in 1999.
- The Tritons out-shout the Toreros, 13-11. Each team had four corner kicks.
- UC San Diego entered Wednesday's match atop the Big West leaderboard with a save percentage of .865.
- Through seven matches, the Tritons have surrendered only one first half goal this season.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego opens Big West Conference play next Wednesday for the first time, when the Tritons host UC Davis. The match gets underway at 6 p.m. from Triton Soccer Stadium, with Steve Quis and Sal Zizzo calling the action.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
