BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Cal State Stanislaus used a defensive style of soccer and used counterattacks as its only form of offense and it worked to shut down Cal State Bakersfield and earn a 1-0 victory at the Main Soccer Field on Sunday afternoon.
With the win, the Warriors ended Bakersfield's eight-match winning streak at home and ended the Roadrunners' hopes of finishing a season 11-0-0 at home for the first time in school history.
The win was also Cal State Stanislaus' first over Bakersfield in the two teams' 16 all-time meetings. The Warriors hadn't scored a goal on Bakersfield in seven matches prior to Sunday, but Kyle Nicolson's 84th minute goal ended Stanislaus' goalless streak against the Roadrunners at 724 minutes, 28 seconds.
Bakersfield clearly had the better of the chances and possession throughout the match. The Roadrunners used two goalkeepers with Steve Merriweather playing the first 45 minutes and Steve Trojanowski taking care of the second 45 minutes and neither goalkeeper made a save. The only save credited to the Roadrunners was a team save when Manny Garcia cleared a ball off the line on a corner kick.
So rare were Stanislaus' chances to score, especially in the second half, that the Warriors only had one shot in the entire second 45 minutes and just six shots for the match. But that one shot was costly as it ended up being the only goal of the match.
Kishin Hamaguchi made a long run down the right sideline and sent in a cross on the ground that somehow made it past two Bakersfield defenders and Trojanowski and found Nicolson at the back post for a sliding goal and the game-winner.
Bakersfield had numerous chances despite Stanislaus sending 10 and sometimes all 11 players back into the final 30 yards of the field throughout the match. That mass of players made shot-taking difficult and many resulted in a deflection.
But Guilherme Mitrovitch had a golden opportunity late in the second half when he took the ball 50 yards on his own and weaved through nearly the entire Warrior defense before finding himself one-on-one with goalkeeper Mando Herrera. But Mitrovitch blasted the ball over the goal to leave the match scoreless.
The Roadrunners hit the road next week and will face Cal State Dominguez Hills for the final time on Friday with a 7 p.m. kickoff in Carson, Calif.
California State University, Bakersfield Athletic Department
9001 Stockdale Highway, Bakersfield, CA 93311-1022
Phone: (661) 654-3071 • FAX: (661) 654-2376
