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Box Score
In a game that was decided in
large part by the head official’s whistle, Cougar men’s soccer fell
at home on Sunday 3-2 to Westminster.
CSUSM is now 3-4-1 on the year.
The Cougars had the upper hand early on, forcing the issue and
creating chances. In the 20th minute, Troy Skomra launched one of
his patented throw-ins into the box, finding the foot of Dan Sims.
Sims put a beautiful touch on the ball, knocking it over his head
across the face of the goal. Forward Brandon Zuniga beat the keeper
to the ball, heading it in to put CSUSM up 1-0.
Westminster tied it up late in the half, with Jeff Gardner ripping a
shot from 20 yards out that beat Cougar keeper Tashi Nakanisi in the
42nd minute.
But with the tight game tied and about to head into halftime, the
complexion of the contest was unfortunately changed by the referee.
Cougar defender Trey Whitaker was given his second yellow card on a
ticky-tack call, resulting in an automatic red card and ejection.
One minute later, fellow defender Jordan Shadeed was sent off for a
wayward elbow. Assistant coach Bobby Renneisen was also ejected at
the start of the second half.
Forced to play two men down for the entire final 45 minutes, the
Cougars fought valiantly, but simply couldn’t overcome the
overwhelming numbers advantage. Westminster scored in the 55th
minute, then again in the 65th. Though the Cougars got one back in
the 70th when Miguel Jacobo drew a foul in the box and knocked home
the penalty kick, Westminster held on to win the game 3-2.
CSUSM will play at Westmont on Wednesday.
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