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California State University at Bakersfield Athletics

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NiklasKorberMN03
Mark Nessia/Mark Nessia Photography
3
Winner Saint Mary's (CA) SMC (5-0-0)
2
CSU Bakersfield CSUB (1-4-0)
Winner
Saint Mary's (CA) SMC
(5-0-0)
3
Final
2
CSU Bakersfield CSUB
(1-4-0)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 OT 1 F
Saint Mary's (CA) SMC 1 1 1 3
CSU Bakersfield CSUB 0 2 0 2

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

`Runners Rally But No. 7 Saint Mary's Wins in Overtime



BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Two goals in the final seven minutes of Friday night's match helped CSU Bakersfield's men's soccer team push Saint Mary's, the No. 7 team in the country, to overtime at the Main Soccer Field. The Gaels (5-0) managed to remain undefeated thanks to a rebound goal as Saint Mary's held off the charging Roadrunners for a 3-2 win.
 
After the two teams tested the waters lightly for the first 25 minutes of the match, Saint Mary's broke through to take a 1-0 advantage. The Gaels' 28th-minute goal came on the right foot of Jake Rudel, who blasted a shot from just outside the 18-yard box into the upper right corner.

Bakersfield did not hang its head after the first goal, battling Saint Mary's to a 1-0 score at halftime. After the break, the `Runners continued to go toe to toe with the Top 10 team. CSUB drove deep into the Gaels' final third several times in the middle of the second half, but a counterattack in the 80th minute helped Saint Mary's to a 2-0 lead on Lucas Andrews' goal.

Unfazed by the setback, Bakersfield continued fighting to the final whistle, which would come later than Saint Mary's hoped. Less than four minutes after conceding the second goal, the `Runners earned a penalty kick opportunity on a hand ball in the box. While a diving save kept CSUB off the scoreboard for a moment, the ball rebounded right to senior Niklas Korber, who buried the ball in the back of the net for his team-high fourth goal of the season.

At 85:08, just two minutes later, Ryan Goldsmith sent a ball into the box that looked like it would be cleared by a Gael defender. A big swinging whiff saw the ball skirt past the defender and caught the Saint Mary's goalkeeper off guard. The ball squeaked past the diving net minder and into the goal to tie the score with less than five minutes remaining.

The `Runners and Gaels headed to overtime with a 2-2 tie, but it would take the visiting team just under four minutes to find the game-winner. Senior Anders Engerbretsen, a two-time All-West Coast Conference honoree, drove deep into the CSUB box and blasted the ball to the near corner. The ball bounced off the post, but came right back to the forward's head and he nudged home his seventh goal of the season to keep Saint Mary's a perfect 5-0 on the season.

With the loss, Bakersfield drops to 1-4 on the season, but two of the team's losses have come against Top 10 opponents as the `Runners suffered another tight loss, 2-1, on the road at No. 10 Duke a couple weeks ago. The young group of `Runners are talented and finding their way on the pitch, quickly putting together the pieces to form a dangerous side.

CSUB will wrap up this week's play with a Monday road match against Pacific (1-3). The `Runners and Tigers are set to square off at 7:30 p.m. in Stockton, Calif.
 
~GoRunners.com~
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