California Baptist University
10-7-4, 4-3-2
UCLA
11-6-1, 4-4-1
Tremendous CBU Men's Soccer Season Comes to a Close In First Round of NCAA Tournament
11/17/2022 8:28:00 PM | Men's Soccer
WESTWOOD – California Baptist University men's soccer played a historic match on Thursday afternoon in Westwood, challenging the UCLA Bruins in the First Round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament. The Lancers struck first, but the Bruins eventually prevailed by a score of 2-1. The Lancers' inaugural season of Division I postseason eligibility ends ultimately as a success, having defied the odds to make it to the National Tournament by means of winning the Western Athletic Conference Tournament after entering it as the five seed.
" I've got nothing but pride for this group and what they've achieved. To come through our conference tournament, get three days to patch up a shattered squad, and then hit the road to face UCLA is a monumental challenge. But even with all of that going against us, to go toe to toe with such a talented UCLA squad and walk away feeling a bit aggrieved not to win…the boys did something special," said head coach Coe Michaelson after the match. "The seniors should be so proud to help set a foundation at the DI level for this program going forward, and the returners walk out of here knowing we are capable of using this as a launchpad for next year."
The game started beautifully for the Lancers, who got early pressure on the host Bruins as Bryan Iliohan and Georg Bjarnason each forced the UCLA keeper to make a play within the first five minutes of the match. The pressure ultimately paid off with a Lancer goal in the seventh minute.
Luis Mueller swung in a corner kick that was cleared but not well enough by a UCLA defender, the ball soon found its way back to Mueller, who attempted a volley toward the goalkeeper, but another defender stifled that. Luis gathered the ball once more and, this time, made a more deliberate attempt at goal and put it through the keeper's legs and into the back of the net.
A few hundred Lancer faithful who made the trip to Westwood immediately erupted into joyous cheers for the program's first Division I postseason goal and lead. That elation was soon quelled when the Bruins leveled the score in the ninth minute. The score would stay knotted until the halftime horn.
The second half was all out effort from both sides, making for 45 minutes of exciting, fast-paced soccer. CBU had a few quality chances, but the Bruins pulled ahead in the 69th minute. CBU went on to outshoot UCLA 6-4 in the half and earned five corners to the Bruins's two, but the closest CBU came to finding that second score was a Bryan Iliohan strike that clanged off the bottom of the crossbar onto the goal line but not over.
Michaelson noted, "At 1-1, we hit the crossbar and had another great chance before they scored. And at 2-1, we were pushing hard for the equalizer. It's a harsh reminder that the margins at this level are so fine."
Foundational seniors Jordan Lane, Brian Gonzalez, Bryan Iliohan, and Emiel Deconink cap their CBU careers by leading the Lancers to a level of success few thought was attainable for a squad in their first season of eligibility. The rest of the team, led by returners such as Thomas Beecham, Luis Mueller, Antonio Gomez, and David Cordes, will be set on improving on this season's final results in 2023.
Team Stats
Luis Mueller (8)
GOAL by CBU Mueller, Luis.
06:43
Jose Contell (4)
Assisted By: Andre Ochoa , Tommy Silva
GOAL by UCLA Contell, Jose Assist by Ochoa, Andre and Silva, Tommy.
08:01
Kevin Diaz (4)
GOAL by UCLA Diaz, Kevin.
68:59
