Men's Soccer Upsets #25 Point Loma Nazarene
Program's first win against a nationally ranked team
September 16, 2006

Complete Box Score

If the CSUSM men's soccer team was still under the radar after a 6-1 start, it won't be much longer.

That's because the Cougars defeated #25 Point Loma Nazarene 1-0 on Saturday. It is the program's first ever victory against an opponent that is nationally ranked by the NAIA.

The game was physical and hard-fought from start-to-finish. Control of play switched back-and-forth between the two sides, though legitimate scoring opportunities were few and far between. Bradley Seidenglanz was very active early for the Cougars, nearly scoring on a breakaway opportunity in the early game. However, Point Loma keeper Bryan Louzil was up for the challenge, getting a hand on the shot and deflecting it out of bounds.

Seidenglanz would have his revenge. In the 30th minute, the Cougars earned a throw-in deep in Point Loma territory. Troy Skomra launched it into the box, where Brian Luhrs controlled the ball. Luhrs adeptly slipped a pass across the box, connecting with Seidenglanz, who tapped it into the open corner of the net.

Up 1-0 with 60 minutes left to play, the task for the Cougars was just to hold on. Coach Ron Pulvers switched to a strategy based on counterattacking in the second half, which resulted in more opportunities for the Cougars.

After some near misses, disaster struck in the 67th minute. Following a hard foul by Point Loma, Troy Skomra threw a ball at a Point Loma player. A brief skirmish followed, but both teams' coaches quickly broke it up. However, Skomra was red-carded, leaving the Cougars a man down for the remainder of the match.

With its newfound advantage, Point Loma pushed hard to equalize the score. However, the San Marcos defenders, led by senior Ben Crouse, held strong; and goalkeeper Trent Painter did not let anything past. Though he was only called on to make two saves, Painter's decision making was excellent as usual en route to his fifth shutout of the year.

As the final whistle sounded, the Cougars celebrated, knowing they had earned their most impressive win of the season thus far. They won't have long to savor the victory, though - they'll be back on Mangrum Field this Tuesday (9/19) against Vanguard University. Any and all CSUSM fans are welcome to attend the 4:00 PM game and cheer on their 7-1 Cougars!