RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Noah James scored in the 14th minute,
Luca Fava added his first goal of the season in the 66th, and San Diego men's soccer closed out a 2-1 win at California Baptist on Saturday night before a packed CBU Soccer Stadium.
No. 7 San Diego (3-1-1) got the opener from freshman Tony Ramirez who checked in during the third minute, and 10 minutes later had his first collegiate assist when he set up James for the midfielder's second goal of the season with an out-of-the-box left-footed goal that gave USD the lead.
California Baptist (2-2-0) matched the Toreros shot for shot before the break — seven apiece — but San Diego was the only side to test a goalkeeper in the opening 45 minutes, putting three of its seven attempts on frame while the Lancers put none on target.
The match turned in the 65th minute, when California Baptist was reduced to 10 men on a red card for denying a goal-scoring opportunity. Forty-five seconds later, Fava finished off a build-up from Iain Wagner and Steven Ramirez to make it 2-0 with a right-footed shot from the penalty arc. CBU pulled a goal back from the penalty spot in the 68th minute, but it was the last chance for the Lancers as they were not able to register another shot after the 75th minute.
USD outshot the hosts 11-4 after halftime, finished with an 18-11 edge for the match and took six of their nine corner kicks in the second half. Taj Eagleston co-led all players with four shots and Ramirez matched him with four while adding an assist.
The competitive energy between the Toreros and Lancers provided another tense matchup, as tonight's clash included 24 total fouls between both sides, along with multiple prolonged VAR checks, notably on a disallowed offside goal early in the game for San Diego in the 5th minute.
UP NEXT
San Diego wraps up its road trip on Tuesday at UC Irvine as kickoff at Anteater Stadium is set for 6 p.m.
