The UTRGV Men’s Soccer Team defeated California State University, Bakersfield 2-1 tonight at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
With tonight’s game, the Vaqueros go from four conference victories to five, which breaks the program record for most conference victories.
At the 19:18 mark, CSUB’s junior midfielder Niklas Koerber scored the first goal of the night. After UTRGV’s defense had some miscommunication, CSUB’s freshman forward Niall Owens passed the ball to Koerber.
Koerber came in from the right side of the field and placed the ball on the left side of the goal, giving the Roadrunners a 1-0 lead.
Five minutes after, UTRGV fired back. Senior forward Rooby Dalusma took a corner kick for the Vaqueros.
Junior forward Kyle Edwards received the corner kick from Dalusma. The ball was then deflected by the CSUB defense, back to Edwards and finally to senior forward Jaako Hietikko.
Hietikko wasted no time and took a direct shot on goal. The ball went past the goalie and into the upper right corner of the goal, tying the game 1-1.
With 40 seconds remaining in the first half, junior midfielder Angel Lopez passed the ball to sophomore midfielder Bryce Box. Box put the ball into the goal, giving the Vaqueros a 2-1 lead at the end of the first half.
The game remained scoreless until the final whistle blew, resulting in a 2-1 victory for UTRGV.
Head Coach Paul Leese said he was pleased with the team’s performance.
“It was a hard-fought game,” Leese said. “I thought we came out in the first half and really fell into a good rhythm. I thought we controlled; we were passing the ball very, very well.”
UTRGV moves to a record of 5-2 in WAC. The Vaqueros host their next game at 11 a.m. Sunday against California Baptist University at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex.
