The UCSD men’s soccer team dropped its game against Cal State Dominguez Hills and with the 2-1 heartbreaker, lost its first-place standing in the California Collegiate Athletic Association South Division.
Dancing shoes:
The No. 20 Tritons (10-4-1 overall, 7-4-1 CCAA) came into the game in first place, but could not come back after the Toros scored a tie-breaking goal in the 83rd minute.
The Toros began the game by hurting themselves, when midfielder Jesse Graham received a yellow card after arguing with the official. Later, Graham tackled a Triton hard, earning him a second yellow card, which lead to a red card and his ejection from the game.
The Toros were not slowed by the loss of a player. Just four minutes after the ejection, Cal State Dominguez Hills’ Sammy Rivas corner-kicked the ball to Carmelo Terranova, who scored his fourth goal of the year to give the Toros a one-goal advantage.Terranova’s goal was the last highlight before halftime, when UCSD reworked its game plan and came out firing in the second half. The Triton offense brought out their big guns, popping off 11 shots in the second half, compared to the Toros’ four.
However, only one of their 11 shots was a success, as their lone goal came in the 57th minute, when freshman Tom Caplan’s pass found senior Grant Nishio for a header that beat Toro goalie Kyle Polak. Nishio’s fifth goal of the season knotted the matchup and gave the Tritons hope for a huge win over a CCAA rival.The game remained even until the Toros tallied the game-winner in the 83rd minute on a goal from Kei Kamara, his 12th of the year. Toro freshman forward Nick Ripetto set up the score with a long pass to Kamara, who netted the goal with UCSD senior goalkeeper Edward Ruhland caught out of position.
The score gave the Toros the lead, one they did not squander, and handed the Tritons their first home loss of the year.
The loss rearranges the CCAA South Division standings, as UCSD and Cal State Dominguez Hills are the top two teams in the division. Coming into the game, UCSD owned first place. However, the loss bumps the Toros up to a one-point lead over the Tritons.
The Tritons have two games remaining to retake first place. Their first chance will come in San Bernardino, Calif., against Cal State San Bernardino on Oct. 26. From there, the Tritons will return home for one last opportunity against Cal State Los Angeles on Oct. 29.
