LA JOLLA, Calif. - The UC San Diego men's soccer team had its scoring chances Friday, outshooting No. 7 Sonoma State Friday 19-14, but ultimately dropped a tough 2-1 decision to the Seawolves.
Tritons' junior midfielder Shane Micheil opened the scoring in the 19th minute on a well-placed header but SSU junior forward Brandon de la Cruz broke through for two goals to help the Seawolves complete the comeback win. UCSD drops to 4-3-4 overall and 1-3-3 in California Collegiate Athletic Association play while SSU remains unbeaten in 2009 at 9-0-2 overall and 6-0-1 through conference action.
Micheil struck at the 18:18 mark for his third score of the season. Junior midfielder David Bakal, dribbling the ball up the left corner of the field, lifted a cross over the box. Micheil waited, pushing some power behind his header and placing the ball to the right of Seawolves' senior goalkeeper Brook Johnson to give the Tritons a 1-0 lead.
SSU quieted the home crowd though, rallying back to tie the match less than five minutes later. After a touch from sophomore defender Ebby Lombardi, junior midfielder David Holleran sent a looping cross into the box. De La Cruz managed to out-leap his defender and send a header to the right of UCSD senior goalkeeper Peter Akman.
After the two squads entered halftime at 1-1, SSU took to the attack as the second half commenced. Seawolves' sophomore forward Casey Bernard, one-on-one with his defender on the left side, found de la Cruz sprinting into an open space at the top of the 18. With the mismatch of two attackers and one defender, de la Cruz placed an easy shot past a practically helpless Akman to extend SSU's advantage to 2-1.
After the Tritons combined for a couple of header chances that Johnson controlled for saves, freshman forward Evan Walker skillfully slipped past his defender into the box and lined a hard shot off the post at the 18:35 mark that ended up out of bounds.
In between a couple of minor skirmishes as the intensity between the two squads heightened, the SSU defense held tough and guided the Seawolves to their sixth league victory.
UCSD returns to its home pitch Sunday for a 12 p.m. match with Humboldt State. The Lumberjacks are 1-7-2 overall and 0-5-2 in CCAA play entering a Friday contest against Cal State East Bay.
