Pirates take over first place in OEC with win over Rustlers
| 00:00 - 2nd | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orange Coast () | 0 | 1 | 1 |
|
Golden West () | 0 | 0 | 0 |
HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Thales Serra was in the right place at the right time and his goal late in the second half helped push the Orange Coast College men's soccer team to a 1-0 win over rival Golden West on Tuesday at GWC.
OCC's win, combined with Santa Ana College's 3-3 tie with Fullerton College, helped push the Pirates to the top of the Orange Empire Conference standings with 25 points (8-2-1 in OEC, 9-4-2 overall). The Dons (7-1-3 in OEC, 12-3-3 overall) are one point back and these same two teams will go at it on Friday at 3 p.m. at the OCC Soccer Complex.
With 85 minutes of back-and-forth, scoreless action, the Pirates finally found the back of the net when a throw-in was deflected by Blake Mooney and the ball found the shin of Serra, who redirected the ball into the goal, putting Coast up for good.
Pirate netminder Nathan Brown came up huge in goal, making seven saves, including several top-notch shots that were destined for the back of the net. It was his third straight shutout for a Pirate team that has won five straight and is unbeaten in six straight.
In fact, OCC's last loss came at the hands of the Dons, 4-0, in a game that played closer than the score indicates. In that match, Coast trailed 1-0 for most of the game before the Dons' offense came to life with three goals over the final 23 minutes of play.
