Men’s soccer scores tough loss

 

By Liliana Marquez

The men’s soccer team finished their preparation for the next conference matches with a defeat at Weingart Stadium last Friday versus the Oxnard College Condors.

The final score was 2-1 favoring the away team. The Huskies played a very complicated match without Head Coach Eddie Flores.

In seven non-conference games, the Huskies have won five and loss two.  In those games, they have scored a total of 14 goals and conceded six.

The Huskies were looking for their sixth-consecutive victory after defeating San Diego Southwestern with a goal by Danny Suarez.

The match kicked off with a foul, committed against ELAC, where Suarez took a shot, which was rejected by a header from one of the opposing defenders. Two minutes in, and a foul was committed against Oxnard, but defender Galo Moreno was there to prevent an early goal from the rival team.

Seconds later, ELAC had a good opportunity but the shot was weak and off target. At minute nine, a foul against ELAC was committed. The Huskies were able to steal the ball and make a counter-attack move but failed to get close to the post.

It was at the 12th minute when the referee showed the first yellow card of the game to Oxnard’s Victor Magana. Following this, a powerful header by Moreno was stopped by the goalkeeper Osvaldo Vollodolid.

At the 16th minute, the Huskies had a goal opportunity but the shot hit the post and the goalkeeper was able to intercept the ball. With a spectacular free kick at  the 23rd minute, Kevin Gomez missed a great goal opportunity as his shot went above the post.

The referee booked Gomez with a yellow card during the 34th minute. Just three minutes before half time, Adolfo Larios, ELAC, generated a great move by stealing the ball but was unable to capitalize on the opportunity. A throw-in by Oxnard at minute 44 was followed by their first goal and the Huskies went into half time down 1-0.

Expectations were high for the second-half, as supporters of both teams wanted to see a more exciting game, with more goals, tricks and great touches. The Huskies needed to put more pressure on the rivals, attack more and work as a team to tie the score and win the match. As the second half kicked-off, Oxnard had a goal opportunity, but Suarez was able to keep the ball away from the post.

The Huskies were awarded a throw-in and Moreno generated a move where Giovanni Reyes took advantage and scored the tying goal  after a 47-minute run. With time passing by, ELAC was gaining more control of the ball and showing their desire to win the match.

At the 54th minute, a foul committed against ELAC gave an opportunity to Jean Gonzalez to score, but his shot hit the goal post. Oxnard’s counterattack was thwarted at midfield during the 59th minute.

One minute later, Oxnard had a unique opportunity to score and took advantage of it giving their team the lead at 2-1. For the rest of the match ELAC kept attacking and trying to score but none of their moves paid off.

Two of the players shared their thoughts on the game. Omar Garcia said, “We could have done a lot better. They brought us down after their second goal.”

“We played a good game, but unfortunately we couldn’t win. We need to learn to win and lose,” said Edwin Fajardo.

With this, the Huskies close a chapter and open a new one as they prepare for their first South Coast Conference home match against LA Harbor, Friday.