BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Oscar Coppieters and Evan Fassler tallied second-half goals, and the Roadrunner men's soccer team held off a furious late surge by The Master's College to claim a 2-1 win Thursday on the Main Soccer Field.
The match was played as an exhibition contest for both teams and will not count in their overall record, but it proved a good starting point for the Bakersfield side.
The opening 45 minutes of play was plagued with turnovers on both ends of the field. Midway through the half, Bakersfield had a chance to break the scoreless tie with a penalty kick following a Mustang tackle in the box. But keeper Andrew Bussell was able to get a hand on Peter Carlson's attempt, sending the team's into the break, 0-0.
Coppieters broke the game open in the 54th minute off a double assist from Chico Ruesga and Ken Taylor. Ruesga started the play with a throw-in down the left line to Taylor, who corralled the ball near the endline. Taylor then flicked the ball to the front of the goalmouth where Coppieters was able to beat Bussell.
Fassler put the Roadrunners ahead 2-0 with a long blast in the 71st minute. After regaining possession in the back field, Robbie Gouk slotted the ball up the middle of the field where Fassler took control. The redshirt freshman then turned and blasted a shot from outside the 18-yard box into the top of the net.
The Mustangs continued to press late, pulling within one with just under nine minutes remaining. A CSUB foul gave The Master's College a free kick just outside the box and, despite a five-man wall, Joel Peluffo was able to whip a shot around and into the far-post net.
The Roadrunners finished with a 14-9 shot advantage, while their defense held strong and the freshman goalkeeper duo of Eric Shannon and Shane Ascheri combined for seven saves.
Bakersfield plays the second of three exhibition matches on Sunday, traveling to Los Angeles for a 3 p.m. kick off against preseason No. 17 UCLA.
The Master's College (0-0-0) vs. CSU Bakersfield (0-0-0)
Date: Aug 20, 2009 Attendance: 239
Weather: sunny, 92 degrees
Goals by period 1 2 Tot
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The Master's College 0 1 - 1
CSU Bakersfield..... 0 2 - 2
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 53:40 CSUB COPPIETERS, Oscar (1) (RUESGA, Chico;TAYLOR, Ken)
2. 70:38 CSUB FASSLER, Evan (1) (GOUK, Robbie) - ball thru middle, blast from top 18
3. 80:34 TMC PELUFFO, Joel (1) (unassisted) - free kick from top of box around the wall
Shots: The Master's College 9, CSU Bakersfield 14
Saves: The Master's College 4 (BUSSELL, Andrew 4), CSU Bakersfield 7 (SHANNON, Eric 3; ASCHERI, Shane 4)
