IRVINE, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton men's soccer dropped its Big West opener at UC Irvine Wednesday night by a final score of 3-2. The Titans are now 5-4-2 on the year and 0-1 in the Big West.
Reziq Banihani gave the Titans the lead in the 24th minute. Banihani got the ball in the box with his back to the goal before turning and firing to the far side of the net for his fifth goal of the season. Julian Madrigal assisted on the goal, his fifth of the year.
Madrigal �� Banihani#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/ZuSl0Q2PeC
— Titans Men's Soccer (@FullertonMSOC) September 29, 2022
UC Irvine answered with a goal of its own in the 32nd minute by Rober Mejia to tie the game at 1-1 which would stand as the score heading into halftime.
The Titans retook the lead in the 58th minute on a header by Jessy Sotelo after a perfect pass from Jorge Quintero.
58' | Titans take the lead thanks to @Sotelo__jessy and a great pass from Quintero! #TusksUp pic.twitter.com/guqyuHJavL
— Titans Men's Soccer (@FullertonMSOC) September 29, 2022
UC Irvine scored the equalizer in the 72nd minute on a goal by Agaton Pourshahidi. With time winding down and the game looking like it was going to end in a draw, Pourshahidi scored the game-winning goal off a deflection in the 89th minute.
Fullerton is back in action Saturday for its Big West home opener against CSU Bakersfield. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
WATCH THE TITANS ON ESPN+
Titans fans can now watch home contests exclusively on ESPN+. Cal State Fullerton has built a top-tier production studio to give the viewers an ESPN quality production for Titan Athletics. Additionally, all schools in the Big West Conference are committed to producing ESPN quality streams which will allow fans to watch the Titans on ESPN+ for all road conference games.
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