LOS ANGELES -- Cal State LA's men's soccer team came up short Sunday in the opening round of the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament.
The No. 3 seed Golden Eagles were unable to overcome a 2-0 deficit and fell to No. 6 seed Cal State East Bay in a first-round conference tournament match in University Stadium. Cal State LA (8-4-6) put the pressure on after falling behind 2-0 early in the second half and had 16 second-half shots, but it wasn't enough to overcome Cal State East Bay (7-5-5). The Pioneers beat the Golden Eagles for the second time this season and advance to the tournament semifinals, where they will face No. 2 seed Stanislaus State at Cal State Monterey Bay on Friday.
Cal State LA had a 23-14 advantage in shots, including a 16-9 edge in the second half when the Golden Eagles desperately tried to get back into the game. The Golden Eagles had a 6-1 edge in corner kicks, with five of them coming in the second half. The Golden Eagles were also awarded a penalty kick with less than 20 minutes to go, but the attempt went wide.
McClelland had four saves for the Golden Eagles, while Adan Corona had six saves for the Pioneers.
Jose Lopez had the lone goal for the Golden Eagles in the 85th minute. The Golden Eagles employed a little trickery on a free kick with goalkeeper
Brayden McClelland running up and sending a short pass to
Emiliano Gutierrez, who was open down the right flank. Gutierrez sent a ball into the box and Lopez had a nice finish to the far post for his second goal in as many games and second of the season. Gutierrez picked up his second assist of the season, while McClelland got his first.
Cal State East Bay took advantage of a miscue and took a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute. Kiichi Murakami collected a loose ball at the top of the box and lofted a shot into an empty net for his third goal of the season.
Geovanni Antuna had an outstanding chance to tie it later in the half when he directed a shot toward the far post, but Corona was able to dive to his left and deflect the ball just enough with his fingertips for it to trickle just outside the post.
The Pioneers started quickly in the second half and took a 2-0 lead in the 47th minute. Alejandro Zarate sent a nice pass to an onrushing Alejandro Verdugo, who fired a perfectly-placed shot inside the far post for his first goal of the season. Corona also picked up an assist on the goal.
Cal State LA will now wait for the NCAA Division II selection show on Monday, Nov. 17 to find out the Golden Eagles' postseason fate. The Golden Eagles were ranked No. 4 in the first numerical ranking last week with the next ranking due out on Wednesday. A total of 10 teams will qualify from the Super Region 4.
