RIVERSIDE -- Cal State LA's incredible postseason run came to an end Thursday in another hard-fought battle against Cal State Dominguez Hills in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

The No. 18 Golden Eagles, who claimed the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament Championship last week, dropped a 1-0 decision to the Toros on Thursday at California Baptist in the fourth meeting of the season between the two nearby rivals and the second in six days. Cal State LA (14-5-3) was playing its fourth game in the past nine days.

The only goal of the game came in the 59th minute courtesy of a perfectly-placed strike from Adam Vargas from well outside the box and that settled up high in the goal, just inside the far post.

Cal State LA had to chase the game from there and had some good looks down the stretch, including a pair of chances by Tim Klefisch and Julian Zamora that were just tipped out of harm's way. The Golden Eagles, after a slow start, found their footing in the second half as the game opened up a bit after a scoreless first half.

Cal State Dominguez Hills had an 18-8 edge in shots, including a 12-2 advantage in the first half. The Golden Eagle defense, much like it did last week in the CCAA Championship Tournament, did a fantastic job of forcing the majority of those attempts to be taken from distance. The starting backline of Kareem Salem, Jose Orellana, Morten Bjoershol and Anton Lindbom had another strong outing on Thursday.

Cal State LA seemed to find its legs a bit in the second half and shots (6-6) and corner kicks (3-3) were even.

The game was the sixth must-win contest the Golden Eagles were involved in down the stretch. Cal State LA needed a 2-1 win over Stanislaus State on Oct. 26 and a 1-0 overtime win over Chico State (1-0) on Oct. 28 to qualify for the CCAA Championship Tournament. The Golden Eagles then rallied from a 3-1 deficit to beat Chico State, 4-3, on Oct. 31 in Chico in a first-round match, advanced on penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie with Cal State Dominguez Hills last Friday in the semis and beat Cal Poly Pomona, 2-0, on Sunday to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.  

Cal State LA was making its sixth NCAA appearance in the past seven years. The 14 wins this season are the most since the 2014 team won 15 games while winning the NCAA West Region championship.