Pirates, Vikings battle to 1-1 draw

COSTA MESA -- There was a lot more action, drama and suspense on display in Tuesday night's nonconference men's soccer match between Orange Coast College and Long Beach City College than a 1-1 score would indicate.

In a game that had endless action and several missed scoring opportunities, the Pirates (1-0-1) and the Vikings (2-0-1) were forced to settle for the stalemate before an enthusiastic crowd under the lights at LeBard Stadium.

After a scoreless half that nearly yielded 2-3 goals for each side, LBCC got on the scoreboard first when Jose Torres found some open space and ripped a shot on goal. OCC goalkeeper Nathan Brown (10 saves) came up with the stop, but the rebound ended up at the feet of Vikings' forward Jose Pineda, who shot into the open net at the game's 53rd minute.

Coast was quick to respond to the deficit and scored in the 57th minute when Drew Parrish dribbled down the right side and sent a perfect cross-pass into the box. Sophomore Jorge Sanchez, the team's leading goal-scorer from a year ago, knew exactly what to do with it and deflected the cross into the back of the net to tie the match.

The real story of the night was the near-goals that were either stopped or just missed their intended marks. Brown, OCC's 6-foot-5 netminder, used his length and agility to his advantage. He stopped four top-quality scoring chances in the first half and came up big again in the second half with back-to-back stops on a potential breakaway.

But the biggest save of the night came from OCC defender Garrett Stiffler-Greasby. In the 83rd minute, Long Beach forward Robert Burgos sent a pass to Frankie Sanchez and his shot slipped past Brown, but Stiffler-Greasby hustled to the goal line and kept the ball out of the net to preserve the tie.

LBCC goalkeeper Rogelio Zaragoza had four saves for the Vikings. 

In the first half, Sanchez had a pair of golden opportunities to score, but his shots just missed wide of the goal. In the 70th minute, Zaragoza came up big with a save off of point-blank shot by Sanchez.

The Pirates will return to action on Friday at San Bernardino Valley College, beginning at 4 p.m. Coast's next home match will take place on Wednesday against El Camino, beginning at 3 p.m. at the OCC Soccer Complex.