TURLOCK, Calif. - The UC San Diego men's soccer team suffered its first loss of the 2009 season, a tough 2-1 road decision Friday at Cal State Stanislaus in front of 1,796 fans. Warriors' junior forward Victor Regalado, the California Collegiate Athletic Association scoring leader, tallied the game-winner in the final minute of regulation to secure the comeback CSUS victory.
The Tritons now sit at 3-1-3 overall and 0-1-2 in CCAA action. Meanwhile, the Warriors hold a record of 5-2-0 overall and 2-2-0 during league play. In 2008, UCSD similarly played six matches before suffering its first loss. The only other time in the program's history that the Tritons went undefeated through the first six games in back-to-back seasons was in 1988 and 1989.
UCSD senior defender
Daniel Pavitt tallied his first career goal as a Triton in the game's 15th minute. Pavitt, attempting a free kick from inside the center circle, launched a shot that went untouched into the net past Warriors' sophomore goalkeeper Javier Rosales.
After UCSD outshot CSUS 15-6 in the first half, the momentum began to swing in the opposite direction during the second period.
Regalado broke through for his first goal of the night in the 54th minute Friday. Off a corner kick from senior midfielder Oscar Ramirez, Regalado headed the ball into the net from the deep side of the box to tie the score 1-1. Before the CSUS goal, the UCSD defense had held its opponents scoreless through the previous 418 minutes of action, dating back to a second-half goal during the Sept. 4 matchup with Notre Dame de Namur at the Seawolf Classic.
After a teammate's free kick was stopped momentarily with just under one minute remaining in regulation, Regalado collected the rebound and placed a shot past Tritons' senior goalkeeper
Peter Akman to take the 2-1 lead at the 89:10 mark. On the play Regalado earned his eighth score of 2009 in just seven games played. Akman ended up with six saves in the losing effort.
Although UCSD recorded five shots on goal in the opening half against starting keeper Rosales, the netminder brought in by the Warriors for the final 45 minutes - freshman Steven Waite - only needed to make one stop. The Warriors have split time between Rosales and Waite evenly in each of their matches.
The Tritons continue their CCAA travels on Sunday when they play against Chico State at 2 p.m. The Wildcats, ranked No. 5 in the Division II West Region, are 5-1-1 overall and 2-0-1 in CCAA play as they host Cal State East Bay Friday.
