SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - #9 California State University San Bernardino men's soccer fell 2-1 to Cal State Monterey Bay Saturday afternoon at Premier Field on Senior Day.
With the loss, the Coyotes drop to 11-2-2 overall and 7-2-0 in CCAA play.
Before kickoff, CSUSB honored 11 seniors in a private Senior Day ceremony: Donovan Palomares, Ty Kerns, Marcos Delgado, Andrew Alonso, Kenny Livernois, Anthony Luna, Angel Rico, Jorge Gomez, Jahir Gonzalez-Sandoval, Dominic Castaneda, and Jalen Belong.
The match remained scoreless until the Otters broke through in the 22nd minute. A set-piece delivery carried through the crowded box to the back post, where an Otter rose to head it into the net for a 1-0 lead.
Seven minutes later, Monterey Bay scored again from a corner kick, finishing from near the penalty spot to make it 2-0. The goal marked the third consecutive goal the Yotes had conceded from a set piece.
A rough first half left CSUSB trailing 2-0 at the break without a single shot, while Monterey Bay recorded seven attempts.
Senior forward Rafa Fonseca pulled a goal back in the 66th minute. Fonseca received the ball on the left side and took on a defender one-on-one before cutting inside and firing a right-footed shot into the back of the net. His sixth goal of the season cut the deficit to 2-1 and moved him into a tie with sophomore forward Nevin Rueegger for the team lead.
CSUSB thought it had found the equalizer in the 79th minute when sophomore midfielder Diego Lopez directed a header toward goal, but an Otter cleared it off the line to preserve the lead.
Despite outshooting Monterey Bay 8-5 in the second half, including a 3-1 edge in shots on goal, the Coyotes could not find an equalizer.
Senior goalkeeper Cody Lindeman played all 90 minutes, facing 12 shots and recording four saves. With the loss, his record moves to 3-2 on the season.
Next up, CSUSB remains at Premier Field to host #1 Cal State Los Angeles on Friday, Oct. 23 for Breast Cancer Awareness Day. Kickoff is set for noon.
