NORTHRIDGE, Calif. --- UC Irvine men's soccer rode its graduate senior
Robert Mejia to a second straight win downing hosts CSUN, 2-1, at Matador Soccer Field Saturday night.
UCI (4-11-1, 4-3) had some new faces on the field to start with second-year forward
Juan Barragan-Manzo on the field for his first career start, and
Cody Aung joined him as the goalkeeper making his collegiate debut in his second year with the 'Eaters. Aung was tested early with making his first two saves in the first 15 minutes.
The 'Eaters got the scoring going in the 15th minute. After a pair of shots on target,
Robert Mejia and
Diego Otoya were working in the box. Otoya turned and whipped a shot low toward the far post that was saved on a dive by CSUN keeper Cooper Wenzel. Mejia crashed on the rebound that was also stopped by Wenzel, but that rebound went right into Mejia that deflected back on goal and across the line on a bounce for a 1-0 lead for UC Irvine.
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The lead would grow 14 minutes later with Mejia adding his second goal of the night. The Matadors (7-5-4, 4-3-1) dropped their guard on the defensive end and Mejia pounced to force a steal and slip a shot by the charging Wenzel for a 2-0 advantage in the 29th minute.
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CSUNÂ quickly got back in the game putting one of their own in in the 34th minute. A long lead ball was knocked around to David Diaz who fired from distance inside the left post to make it a 2-1 match into the half.
UCI had a golden opportunity to get their two-goal lead back early in the second half with a penalty awarded in the 50th minute. Barragan-Manzo was at the spot, but his shot was saved by Wenzel to keep things close.
Aung on the other end stood tall with four second half saves to match his four saves in the first half. The teams combined for 13 corner kicks in the second half and 16 shots, but could not find the back of the net as the 'Eaters come away with their first road win of 2022.
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FINAL SCORE: UC IRVINE 2, CSUN 1
Aung pulls out the win in his collegiate debut adding eight saves for a team high on the season and third match with at least seven saves for a keeper on the year.
Mejia on the offensive end tripled his goal count for the season matching
Agaton Pourshahidi for the team lead in goals. He's earned a point in each of the last two games now with an Anteater team best eight points. For the team, its the second brace of the year as he joins Pourshahidi's brace vs. Cal State Fullerton. Mejia earns his second career brace including the one he notched in his penultimate game as an Aggie.
Otoya also benefited on the offensive side picking up his first career assist on Mejia's first goal. The 2-1 lead at the half for UCI marked the first win for the Anteaters this year when leading at the half and just the second time taking a lead to the half.
The win keeps the 'Eaters alive and well for a Big West Tournament spot with 12 points and still have a path to a regular season title just three points off the conference leaders, UC Santa Barbara, with their matchup next on the schedule and both with two matches left to play to one for the rest of The Big West.
"I'm very excited for the group as we performed very well in one of the hardest Big West environments," lauded head coach
Yossi Raz. "CSUN is a quality team, well-coached, at home on their Senior Day. We controlled a lot of the tempo and produced many quality moments to score which is a reflection of our talent and growth. The closing minutes of the game when they were pushing everything into the box best demonstrated our growth. We will enjoy the win tonight, but will focus on recovering and preparing for Wednesday vs. UC Santa Barbara."
The upcoming match will be at Anteater Stadium with a 6:00 p.m. kickoff on Wednesday, October 26, with the season finale next Saturday, October 29, at UC San Diego.
