Men's Soccer Posts Convincing 6-0 Win Over La Sierra; Defense Back on Track
October 18, 2006

Complete Box Score

Mike Nuovo's two goals propelled the Cougar men's soccer team (11-3) to a convincing 6-0 win at La Sierra University on Wednesday. Earlier this month, CSUSM defeated La Sierra by a score of 4-0.

Almost as important than the win itself was the fact that the squad's defense regained its form. In its first eleven games, the Cougars limited opponents to just seven goals. But in a weekend road trip against U.C. Santa Cruz and Menlo, the defense faltered, allowing seven goals in just the two games.

Wednesday's match was the first since those games, and the defense bounced back better than ever, as did keeper Trent Painter. The offense was awfully good too, with forwards Curtis Marcikic and Mike Nuovo playing dynamic games. The Cougars controlled every phase of the match, out-shooting La Sierra by a staggering total of 29-3, and earning ten corner kicks to their opponent's zero.

The Cougar scoring came early and often. Off the opening kickoff, Curtis Marcikic split the defense for a one-on-one with the keeper, but was unable to convert. At the one-minute mark, Miguel Jacobo penetrated the defense, and struck a cross in front of the goal. A La Sierra defender tried to head it aside, but redirected it into his net for an own goal.

But the Cougars wouldn't need that kind of luck on Wednesday. In the 11th minute, Curtis Marcikic slid a pass to Mike Nuovo behind the defense, and Nuovo was able to slip it under the keeper. Just two minutes later, the same duo teamed up for another goal, with Marcikic once again finding Nuovo behind the defense.

Three minutes after that, the Cougars earned a free kick in La Sierra territory. Chris Wyatt surprised his opponents by taking the kick quickly, and finding defender Ben Crouse making a run. Crouse was able to tuck his shot into the bottom corner of the net.

At the 43-minute mark, CSUSM would push its lead to 5-0. Miguel Jacobo hit a cross that found Brandon Zuniga, who made a nifty redirection towards the goal. The keeper would make the save, but Daniel Vasquez was there to clean up the rebound.

The scoring was capped off in the 70th minute when Bradley Seidenglanz collected a loose ball, made a run through the defense, and beat the keeper. The 7-0 final score matches the squad's biggest margin of victory, which came in the September 7th win over San Diego Christian College.

Next up for the Cougars is a home game against Chapman University on Friday, October 20th. All fans are welcome to head down to Mangrum Field to cheer on their Cougars in the last home match of their inaugural season! Kickoff is at 4:00 PM, with the women's team playing at 2:00 PM.