The Broncos were defeated by Cal State Los Angeles 2-0 on Sunday afternoon in the CCAA conference tournament championship game.
In a rematch of last year’s championship game, the Broncos sought to get their revenge on the Golden Eagles.
Cal Poly was the No. 1 seed in the tournament and Cal State L.A. was the No. 2 seed coming into the game.
In the first half, the game was tight as neither team could get the upper hand on each other.
In just a minute into the game, forward Brian Peek had an opportunity in front of the goal, but his shot sailed high over the post.
The first half ended with neither team getting a goal.
In the second half, both teams were quiet. The game looked like it was going to head into overtime. With just seven minutes left in regulation, the Eagles scored as Robin Lindahl kicked the ball into the bottom left corner.
Just three minutes after, L.A. got its second goal of the game as Carlos Zarate’s shot was deflected by the Broncos goalkeeper Jakob Hansen and trickled over the goal line.
The loss was the Broncos’ second straight loss in the championship against the Golden Eagles.
Men’s soccer defeated Cal State San Bernardino 1-0 Friday night in the semifinal game of the CCAA conference.
The Broncos played the Coyotes in the start of conference play and lost by the score of 3-0, with two of the final Coyotes goals coming in the last five minutes of the game.
Starting the game, the Broncos came out with a lot of pressure on them.
“We knew it was going to be a good game and a tight match,” head coach Adam Reeves said.
“Obviously, one goal could swing it. I’m happy we got the shutout.”
The Broncos had the first corner of the game, which was taken by junior midfielder Ori Kenett.
Kennett’s cross was high but curved toward the goal, hitting the top of the crossbar, nearly giving the Broncos the lead with less than 10 minutes into the game.
The Coyotes nearly scored in their first opportunity of the game.
Off a free kick on the left side of the field was nearly a goal as the Coyotes’ forward headed the ball, which went just wide right of the goal.
Junior midfielder Cyro Oliveira took his first shot of the game from outside the box that was easily saved by the Coyotes’ goalkeeper.
With another opportunity for the Broncos, sophomore midfielder Eduardo Faria’s header went wide right from the post.
The Coyotes’ offense struggled to get possession of the ball. With Cal Poly holding most of the possession, it looked like the only way the Coyotes could score a goal would be off a counter attack.
The first half ended in a tie with the Broncos outshooting the Coyotes 7-6 in the game.
One of the adjustments that the Broncos made was substituting junior midfielder Jordan Jackmon for sophomore midfielder Omar Green.
To go along with Green, the Broncos also added freshman forward Gabriel Castillo to sophomore forward Brain Peek who had four goals in the season but struggled in the first half.
Green and Castillo made their impact right away as Green drove down the left side of the field and sent a cross into the box where Castillo was waiting on the other side and headed the ball into the goal.
“I seen my teammate take on the defender and I knew this was my moment when he crossed it,” Castillo said.
“It was an easy tap in, so I have it give it to Omar (Green) who gave me the easy goal.”
The Broncos took the 1-0 lead with just 30 minutes left in the game.
Coach Reeves added another defensive player with just 15 minutes in the game, pushing his defense back.
With only three minutes left in the game, all-CCAA offensive player of the year Danny Ortiz had an opportunity to tie the game for the Coyotes with a free kick just outside the box.
Ortiz’s shot went high over the post, ending the game and advancing the Broncos to the championship game against Cal State L.A.
Ortiz only had three shots in the game, with two of them on goal.
Defenders Jason Ramos and Nadeer Ghantous were the anchors for the Broncos’ defense and helped secure the shutout.
“Of course, it’s a challenge for me and Jason, but I think all the team helped us,” Ghantous said.
“It’s not about me and Jason, it’s about the teamwork and we worked pretty well defensively. We knew if we were going to score one goal there was no chance that they were going to score on us. We worked all together, and we defended as one unit.”
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