The Cal State Fullerton men’s soccer team snapped a four-game losing streak on Saturday scoring early and often against the University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks and winning by a margin of 3-0.
Goals by Garrett Losee, Amara Soumah and Jamie Cano powered CSUF to their second win of the 2013 season. The road had been unkind to Head Coach Bob Ammann’s Titans leading up to Saturday’s match in Omaha. On their four-game trip away from Titan Stadium, CSUF had dropped all three of their previous matches despite holding an early lead in each of them.
During the streak the Titans also found themselves on the wrong side of two golden goals in back-to-back overtime losses to the University of San Diego and Cornell. And up until Saturday, the Titans hadn’t won a single contest on the road since defeating UC Riverside in overtime on Oct. 20 of last season.
Getting the Titans going early was Losee, the junior midfielder. The BYU transfer spared no time in opening the match aggressively when his third minute header from junior midfielder Spencer Johnson’s free kick beat Mavericks senior goalkeeper Matt Grosey. The goal was Losee’s first career tally with the Titans and the fourth time in as many games the Titans had scored first against an opponent.
After scoring early, the Titans capped off the first half by putting another goal in the Mavericks’ net via Soumah’s second goal of the season. The junior transfer forward benefitted from the work of fellow junior transfer Marc Fenelus on the Titans’ right side to tap in from close range for a commanding two goal lead heading into the break. The assist was Fenelus’ first of the season.
The two goal lead was more than enough for the Titans’ senior goalkeeper, Robbie Hannon. The London native filled in for usual starting goalkeeper Bryan Escalante, and needed just three saves to record his first win and shutout of the season.
Finishing off the match, the Titans had a chance to add some insurance when a handball in the Mavericks’ penalty area awarded CSUF a penalty kick with just 15 minutes remaining in the match.
Cano, a senior defender for the Titans, coolly guided his penalty home past Grosey giving the Titans a comfortable three goal lead. The goal was Cano’s first of the 2013 season.
Despite ending the match with a narrow 13-12 shot advantage, the Titans dominated all facets of the box score including having a 7-1 corner kick advantage over the Mavericks. For their part, the side from Omaha’s best opportunity came in the match’s 51st minute when freshman midfielder Xavier Gomez rattled a shot off the Titans’ crossbar, only to have the ball bounce on the goal line before being cleared from danger.
With the win, the Titans improve to 2-5 on the 2013 season, garnering their first shutout win on the road since their 3-0 victory against American University back on Sept. 16, 2011. The Titans now return home hoping to build off this victory before Big West Conference play starts in October.
Fullerton will have a week to train before taking on Grand Canyon University at Titan Stadium on Sept. 28. The match with Grand Canyon will be their last leading up to league play, when they travel to UC Santa Barbara to face a tough Gauchos team in their Big West opener.
For more information on the CSUF men’s soccer team and updates on all Titan athletics, go to FullertonTitans.com.