One win can be considered a fluke. Two can even be chalked up to luck. But after the UCSD men’s soccer team racked up its third straight win on Sunday afternoon, you have to admit it: These guys have game.

The Tritons shut out their California Collegiate Athletic Association rival, the Chico State Pioneers, 2-0 at Triton Soccer Stadium. The win brings UCSD to within one game of the .500 mark with a record of 4-5 in the CCAA and 4-7 overall.

Despite being outshot in the match 17-8, the Tritons relied on defense to carry them to the victory.

Senior defender Jamie Lutton came through at the 19:53 mark with his first goal of the season, giving UCSD the early lead. Lutton converted a penalty kick after Pioneer goalkeeper Dustin Eastment fouled freshman David Ower in the penalty box.

Chico State, now 3-3 in the CCAA and 7-4 overall, was unable to crack the tough Triton defense. Junior goalie Ryan Weirich made four saves for UCSD to earn his second shutout of the year. Eastment could only manage one save.

The game was physical, with the two teams combining for 54 fouls in the game. Six yellow cards were handed out as well, indicating that this was a very emotional and tough game for both sides.

Junior Sean Summers put the game away for the Tritons. With just 12 seconds remaining in the match, Summers broke away for an unassisted goal.

UCSD will now hit the road for two important conference games this weekend. The team will square off against California State University Bakersfield on Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. The Tritons then travel to Turlock to take on Cal State Stanislaus on Oct. 7 at 3 p.m.

The Tritons’ next home match will be Oct. 20, when it hosts Cal State San Bernardino at 2 p.m. at Triton Soccer Stadium. That game will be played as part of UCSD Homecoming 2001.