Sophomore midfielder Tino Nuñez collected his
own
rebound from the foot of a Cal State Fullerton defender and toe-poked
the
ball past Titan goalkeeper Sam Reynolds in the 108th minute to give
top-ranked UC Santa Barbara a 4-3 double-overtime win in Big West play
on
Wednesday night.
The goal by Nuñez, his first, gave the Gauchos a 9-0-1 record,
the longest
unbeaten streak to open a season in school history. UCSB is also
2-0-0 in
Big West play. Cal State Fullerton, which was playing a man down
at the
time, dropped to 0-6-2 on the year, 0-2-0 in league action. All six Titan
losses have come by a single goal, twice in the second overtime period.
UCSB, playing without starting defenders Tony Lochhead, Andy Iro, and
Greg
Curry, all of whom were serving suspensions for yellow card accumulations,
got on the board first at the 10:47 mark when senior Drew McAthy took
a
one-touch pass from senior Matt Bly who had received a cross from senior
Neil Jones, and drove the ball to the right of Reynolds. The goal
was
McAthy's ninth of the season.
McAthy and Jones were also involved in Santa Barbara's second goal.
Jones
beat three defenders down the left side, crossed a pass to the back post
and
a waiting McAthy. McAthy brilliantly headed the cross to the feet
of junior
forward Jonathan Davis. Davis spun his defender and fired one into
the back
of the net for his second goal of the season, giving the Gauchos a 2-0
lead.
Cal State Fullerton cut the lead in half at the 21:40 mark, when German
Moreno was tripped in the penalty box and the Titans were awarded a penalty
kick. Andrew Sam took the kick, and although Gaucho goalkeeper Dan
Kennedy
got a hand on the ball, it bounced into the back of the goal. Fullerton
used
another penalty kick to tie the score at 2-2 at 33:49. Sam was tripped
in
the penalty box by an on-rushing Kennedy, and took the penalty kick himself,
blasting it into the right side of the net.
The Titans didn't waste time breaking the tie. At the 35:29 mark,
Steve
Moreno pounced on a loose rebound of an Andrew Sam shot, just in front
of
Kennedy and pounded it home to make it 3-2 at halftime.
The Gauchos tied the score in the 57th-minute. Nuñez drove
down the left
side of the box and crossed a pass to Jones who headed the ball into the
upper right corner, past a backpedaling Reynolds.
The teams were scoreless the remainder of regulation. In the first
overtime, neither team had a dangerous chance, but a key turn of events
took
place. Titan junior defender Jose Barragan received a pair of yellow
cards,
one at 96:43 for delay of game, and the second at 99:43 for unsportsmanlike
behavior. Cal State Fullerton played the second overtime a man down and
the
Gauchos made them pay.
UCSB outshot Cal State Fullerton for the match, 22-9. Reynolds played
an
outstanding match for the Titans, producing nine saves. Kennedy had four
saves for the Gauchos and the third goal he allowed was just the second
non-penalty kick goal he has allowed in ten matches this season.
The Gauchos return to action on Saturday, October 9, when they travel
to Cal
Poly for a 7:00 p.m. match. The Titans play a non-conference match Saturday
at future Big West rival UC Davis.
