Men's Soccer Scores 2-0 Friendly Win over Real Salt Lake
February 05, 2013 | Men's Soccer
IRVINE, Calif. --- UCI men's soccer welcomed MLS club Real Salt Lake to a friendly at Anteater Stadium Monday night and came away with a 2-0 win against the pros. RSL took on the Anteaters in the midst of a week of training on the campus of UCI that will continue through Wednesday.
The squad featured a portion of the starting XI that RSL will run out on opening day along with number of draft picks and trailists looking to make the squad.
Real Salt Lake is entering its ninth season in Major League Soccer. It is coming off a quarterfinal appearance in the 2012 playoffs. The squad won the MLS Cup back in 2009 and became the first MLS squad to reach a CONCACAF Champions League Final back in 2011 went it fell to Monterrey of Mexico by one goal.
RSL commanded the possession in the early going of the match, but the Anteater defense remained strong. The Claret-and-Cobalt had one scoring chance called back due to an offside in the 19th minute.
UC Irvine had numerous opportunities once settling into its game. Matthew Tilley and Enrique Cardenas each had chances careen off the crossbar.
UCI opened up the scoring in the 32nd minute when Cameron Iwasa shuffled a lead pass to the left of the box to Christopher Santana who ran onto the ball and sliced a shot through the keeper and in for the 1-0 lead.
Lester Hayes III would increase the advantage just before halftime as he would bend a long-range shot from a rough angle off the far post and in to put UCI up 2-0 in the 41st minute.
Both sides played to a stalemate in the second half. UCI's Michael Breslin along with RSL's keepers each had some momentary chances, but held firm as the final minutes ran out on the 2-0 Anteater victory. Another account of the match including a highlight recap can be seen on the Real Salt Lake website.
Head Coach George Kuntz was very proud of the team's effort and result. His 'Eaters continue their spring season with a trip to San Diego for a pair of matches before returning for a nice home slate that includes Ryutsu Keizai University from Japan.
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