SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton men's soccer defeated Santa Clara 1-0 in its first road game of the season Friday night. With the win the Titans improve to 3-0 on the year, tying their win total from a year ago.
The Titans showed they had a strong game plan going into the match as they used their speed and skill to counter-attack Santa Clara from the opening whistle. Fullerton had a majority of chances in the first half but were unable to net a goal as both teams went into the locker room tied 0-0 at the break. ]
Fullerton broke through early in the second half on a Sebastian Cruz goal in the 54th minute. Cruz leads the team through three games with three goals, two assists and eight points.
54' | Gooooaaal! What a counter, what a finish by @Cruzs100! #TusksUp pic.twitter.com/G1YVIGd9fY
— Titans Men's Soccer (@FullertonMSOC) September 3, 2022
Goalkeeper Tetsuya Kadono started the counter-attack that led to Cruz's goal, quickly getting the ball to near midfield on a perfect throw immediately following a set piece from Santa Clara. From there Jorge Quintero found Jessy Sotelo on a beautiful through ball which brought the Broncos goalkeeper off his line, allowing Cruz a wide open shot on goal.
Along with being a huge component to the Titans counter, Kadono had a strong game in goal as he recorded a season-high six saves in the match.
Fullerton will remain in Northern California this weekend and is back on the pitch Monday evening at San Francisco. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. PT.
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