Pirates, Hawks battle to 2-2 draw
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Santiago Canyon (2-3-2, 0-2-1) | 1 | 1 | 2 |
|
Orange Coast (3-2-2, 1-0-1) | 1 | 1 | 2 |
COSTA MESA -- Under the lights of Dick Tucker Field, the Orange Coast College men's soccer team picked up a last-minute goal to earn a hard-fought 2-2 draw with visiting Santiago Canyon on Tuesday night in an Orange Empire Conference matchup.
With the match tied at a goal apiece, SCC's Brian Chavez scored off an assist by Andy Galvan to put the Hawks (2-3-2, 0-2-1 in OEC) up, 2-1 in the 81st minute of play.
But the Pirates (3-2-2, 1-0-1), who outshot the Hawks, 16-12, used a long send-in off the foot of Cristian Montillo, which was deflected into the back of the net off a redirect by teammate Garen Balikcioglu with less than 2 minutes remaining in regulation time.
Coast nearly pulled off a miracle win when a 50-yard kick towards goal by Montillo nearly tucked itself under the crossbar, but Hawks' goalkeeper David Figueroa managed to get enough on the ball to deflect it over the bar and out of play. Figueroa finished the night with five saves, while Osiel Porcayo notched six saves for the Pirates.
It was a rough start to the match for the hosts as SCC grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second minute. Galvan streaked down the left side and found teammate David Vasquez for the opening goal.
It stayed that way until the 36th minute when the Pirates connected beautifully on passes to get out of the defensive zone. The hard work paid off when Balikcioglu sent a perfect side-foot pass to teammate Jack Slavik and the sophomore forward one-timed a rocket shot into the back of the net, tying the match at 1.
The Pirates till play at Fullerton on Friday at 3 p.m. OCC's next home match will take place on Friday, Sept. 30 against Cypress, also at 3 p.m.
