Pirates fall 3-1 in men's soccer opener
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Chaffey (3-0) | 0 | 3 | 3 |
|
Orange Coast (0-1) | 0 | 1 | 1 |
COSTA MESA -- A 15-minute stretch of open-field play made the difference for the Orange Coast College men's soccer team in Friday afternoon's 3-1 season-opening loss to visiting Chaffey College.
After a well-played scoreless half for both teams, the Panthers (3-0) found the first goal of the game when Jonathan Mendiola took a pass from Adrian Moreno and found the back of the net in the 53rd minute.
The Pirates regrouped and turned up the intensity and played their best soccer of the afternoon on their next possession. Passes connected up the field and in the end, Isacc Campos ripped a low shot past Chaffey netminder Jeses Meza in the 54th minute to tie things up.
Eleven minutes later, Chaffey picked up a little break as a shot by Moreno banked off of an OCC defender and the ball top-spinned over the outstretched arms of Pirate goalkeeper Ryan Brown and into the back of the net, putting the Panthers up for good.
Chaffey iced things three minutes later when a turnover led to another Moreno-to-Mendiola goal to make it 3-1 in the 68th minute.
Coast's performance was better than the 3-1 score would indicate, but some early-season mistakes got the better of the hosts on Friday.
The Pirates return to action on Wednesday at home against Rio Hondo, beginning at 4 p.m.
