Cal Poly men’s soccer beats UC San Diego to climb conference leaderboard
The Cal Poly men’s soccer team defeated UC San Diego 1-0 on Wednesday evening at Alex G. Spanos Stadium. Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara are tied as Big West conference leaders with seven points apiece.
The game was the Mustangs’ (4-4-2, 2-0-1 Big West) first against the Tritons (4-6, 1-2 Big West) at the Division I level. While UC San Diego joined the conference in summer 2020, the season was canceled due to COVID-19.
The Mustangs maintained possession of the ball for 62% of the first half. Cal Poly tallied six total shots — one from midfielder Daniel Normann, two from midfielder Emmanuel Perez and two from defender Jackson Brady.
UC San Diego played with a low-pressure defense, according to Coach Steve Sampson.
This defense made it difficult for the Mustangs to play through the Tritons, as a lot of people were condensed in a small area.
“You have to be faster. You have to be quicker. You have to be more precise,” Sampson said.
Sampson said he asked the Mustangs, including midfielder Daniel Norman and defender Ori Bitton, to make runs through the midfield to the back line.
In the 72nd minute, Cal Poly’s Emmanuel Perez found the bottom right of the goal. Bitton passed the ball toward the penalty box and Norman handed it to Perez, as the senior scored his second goal of the season and propelled the Mustangs to a 1-0 victory.
“I just needed to create a little bit of space and tap that ball in,” Perez said.
As the Mustangs erupted in celebration, midfielder Neil Boyal ran to the sidelines and chest bumped midfielder Seth Murphy. The excitement knocked the wind out of Boyal, however, and Coach Sampson thought he was on the ground with an injury.
“I was literally looking to get a player to substitute in for Neil,” Sampson said. “It was a great celebration, but we’re going to have to work on the chest bump!”
Boyal is an exceptional midfielder, Coach Sampson said, as he can hold the ball, change the team’s point of attack and deliver breaking line passes up the field.
“Neil is literally our quarterback, our field general,” Sampson said.
Goalkeeper Carlos Arce-Hurtado, a Big West men’s soccer player of the week, tallied one save and earned his second clean sheet of conference play.
Perez said the Mustangs’ win is a step to build momentum for their upcoming games.
“It was a great team performance,” Perez said. “We want to focus on being a family and playing for each other.”
The Mustangs’ next game is on the road at UC Irvine on Oct. 9 at 7 p.m.
The Cal Poly men’s soccer team will be back in Alex G. Spanos Stadium on Oct. 13 to play Cal State Fullerton and on Oct. 16 to play UC Santa Barbara in a Blue-Green Rivalry game.
This story was originally published October 6, 2021 at 11:24 PM with the headline "Cal Poly men’s soccer beats UC San Diego to climb conference leaderboard."
