SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco State men's soccer team fell 1-0 to Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday afternoon in non-conference action at Cox Stadium.
- SF State slips to 0-4-2 on the year while Cal State Monterey Bay moves to 3-1-2.
- Prior to the match, SF State honored its 11 seniors: Issay Bravo, Mario De La Torre, Johan Duenas, Jairo Fernandez, Nathan Garcia, Angel Herrera, Ruben Huerta, Kendrick Rivas, Isaac Sandoval, Georgi Stoyanov, and Adrian Vasquez.
- The loss was just the first shutout loss of the season for the Gators. SF State also played to a 0-0 draw versus Jessup.
- Both teams had nine shots. The Otters had a 5-2 shots on goal advantage.
- The Otters held an 8-2 corner kick advantage.
- There were 22 fouls and three yellow cards were handed out. Marco Valdez was carded for the Gators while Monterey's Janos Kommerling and Alexis Sanchez were given cautions.
The Otters grabbed a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute. The Otters attempted a corner kick and eventually got a shot off nearly a minute later from Hugo Vargas-Rios. His shot was saved but the Gators failed to clear the ball and Eric Vazquez-Acosta was there to put the rebound back.
After an Otters goal was waived offside in the 61st minute, SF State had a few opportunities in the second half but were unable to convert. In the 67th minute, Kendrick Rivas broke up an Otters attack and the Gators countered but couldn't get a shot off. In the 68th minute, the Gators defended a pair of dangerous balls in the box and got to the other end but Otters goalkeeper Sean Mattivi was there to grab the loose ball.
Isaac Sandoval sailed a shot in the 75th minute and Mahmoud Shimila hit the side of the net in the 77th minute. A minute later, Gators goalkeeper saved a shot by Ronaldo Guadarrama. Vargas-Rios attempted another shot in the 83rd minute that was saved. The Gators threatened in the final minutes and had a corner kick but were called offside in the same sequence in the 88th minute.
De La Torre (0-3-1) made four saves in the loss and allowed the one goal.
Mattivi (1-1-0) made two saves en route to the win.
"Today was a very emotional day for our group. This group of seniors clearly represents the values of what our program is about: unity, hard work, and sportsmanship. Despite the outcome, I believe the game truly reflected the unity and strength of our team," said Head Coach Sebastian Carrasco. "I feel fortunate to lead these guys. Unfortunately, we were unable to secure the victory that this team deserves. I am very proud of their efforts, and I believe that we are on the right path."
SF State heads to Southern California for its next two matches. The Gators begin CCAA play at Cal Poly Pomona on Friday, October 4 at 7 p.m., then head to Cal State San Bernardino on Sunday, October 6 for an 11:30 a.m. match. Live stats for both matches will be available at sfstategators.com and fans can stream CCAA actino live on FloFC.
