Cal Poly men’s soccer notches first win over UC Davis since 2012

Senior forward Justin Dhillon’s 61st-minute game-winning goal lifted the Cal Poly men’s soccer team to a 2-1 victory Wednesday night over UC Davis at Alex G. Spanos Stadium.

Mustangs sophomore forward Jared Pressley opened the scoring just 69 seconds from the opening whistled as Cal Poly (3-7-2, 1-3-1; four points) secured its first Big West Conference victory of the season and first win over UC Davis since Oct. 31, 2012, breaking a six-match winless streak against the Aggies.

UC Davis defender Kyle Higgins provided the equalizer in the 30th minute.

The win moves Cal Poly within two points of third-place UC Davis (6-6-2, 2-3-0; six points) in the Big West North Division standings and three points shy of second-place Sacramento State after its 1-1 draw with division leader UC Santa Barbara earlier Wednesday.

Junior goalkeeper Eric Kam recorded four saves for the Mustangs.

The opening tally came when Dhillon played a ball over the top of the UC Davis defense for Pressley, who fired from the right edge of the Aggies penalty area. The shot was deflected by Aggies defender Roy Boateng and into the back of the net.

A reversal of Cal Poly’s first goal resulted in the winner, with Pressley playing a ball back to Dhillon, who headed in from three yards out. It was his team-leading seventh of the season and 15th of his career.

Cal Poly closes its four-match home stand on Saturday against Blue-Green rival UC Santa Barbara. Kickoff is 7 p.m.

This story was originally published October 12, 2016 at 11:42 PM with the headline "Cal Poly men’s soccer notches first win over UC Davis since 2012."