FULLERTON, Calif. – The Cal State Fullerton men's soccer team won its third-straight game Sunday afternoon at Titan Stadium beating Nebraska-Omaha 3-1 as the game-winning goal was provided by senior Garrett Losee.
In the 72nd minute, forward Amara Soumah looked to be heading into the box with a chance on goal, but quickly turned, made a move toward the goal line, and sent a the ball across the net to a wide open Losee. He did not miss the chance and tapped it into the open net for the game-winning goal.
The Titans (3-3-2) dominated play early, tallying four shots before the Mavericks could get one on CSF goalkeeper David Rodriguez Elias. Julian Okai nearly opened the scoring for Fullerton in the 19th minute, but his shot from the left side of the box was saved by Nebraska-Omaha goalkeeper Joseph Ghitis, resulting in one of Fullerton's 10 corner kicks on the day.
The chances kept coming for CSF in the 22nd minute as a free kick from Robert Coronado found the head of Ian Ramos; the header flew over the bar to keep the score tied at zero. The Mavericks (3-3-1) came right back in the 23rd minute when Logan Mendez came in on Rodriguez Elias, but a chip attempt flew over the crossbar for a goal kick.
The breakthrough came for Fullerton in the 38th minute when a ball played into the box by Mark Vasquez found the feet of Soumah, the senior turned and fired a shot into Ghitis, but the ball came back to him and he put his second chance into the far post netting, making the score 1-0 Cal State Fullerton.
In the 67th minute, Nebraska-Omaha forward Vance Rookwood tied the game 1-1 with his fourth goal of the season. A high cross was sent into the box by Jake McCain and the 6-foot-3 Rookwood out-jumped Fullerton keeper Rodriguez Elias and headed the ball into the open net.
After Losee's goal in the 72nd minute, the physical game became a battle for possession. In the 88th minute, the Mavericks started a 4-on-2 break looking to send the game to overtime, but a pass that came too late caught the Mavericks offside.
Ramos then sealed the Titan victory with an 89th minute goal, his first of the year, powering a shot from the right side of the box over Ghitis and just under the bar on the far post.
Next up for the Titans will be a matchup at Grand Canyon, Sunday at 5:00 p.m.
Notes: Garrett Losee scored second game-winning goal of the weekend… He now leads the team with three goals on the season… The last three-game winning streak for the Titans came October 6-13, 2013…The Titans now have totaled 12 goals on the season scored by six different players, Ian Ramos adding his name to the list with his first goal of the year…Cal State Fullerton now leads the all time series with Nebraska-Omaha 2-1.