Soccer Scores Mixed Results

Broncos remain in conference hunt after weekend gamesSydney SanchezTHE SANTA CLARAOctober 24, 2013The men’s soccer team walked away with a split this weekend after beating Gonzaga University on Friday night and falling to the University of Portland on Sunday afternoon. The Broncos are now 6-8-0 overall and 3-3-0 in the West Coast Conference. “I’m going to give you a good ball to score,” said freshman midfielder Edson Cardona to senior teammate Harrison Hanley before Friday’s game. Cardona followed through and assisted Hanley on one of his two goals on the night to secure the win for the Broncos. Though it was a Santa Clara victory, the game started out in the Bulldogs’ favor. Gonzaga opened up the scoring early in the first half with a strike that found the back of the Bronco net. “For some reason, we came out slow,” said defender Mark Daus. “It was a lucky bounce for them to get that goal but we realized we couldn’t give another one up. We locked down the net after that.” The team did not allow another goal and eventually scored two goals of its own to come away with the win. Hanley tied the game at 1-1 in the 36th minute after creating space for himself between the Gonzaga defenders. “We’ve been working on getting a body on the (other team’s) defender when the ball’s coming in (the opponent’s box) just to get leverage,” said Hanley. “The past few practices, we’ve been working on it and it paid off in the game.”Gonzaga had a chance to take the lead early in the second half after a play left Santa Clara goalkeeper, Kendall McIntosh, one-on-one against a Gonzaga attacker. McIntosh denied the shot with a diving kick save. Santa Clara took the lead in the 79th minute. A corner kick from Cardona gave Hanley a left-footed shot attempt on goal. Hanley connected and struck the ball into the net for the lead. Santa Clara eventually won 2-1. Hanley scored both Bronco goals on the night. Hanley has scored four goals this season, followed by Cardona with three goals. Santa Clara outshot Gonzaga 16-11 and McIntosh racked up four saves. “We competed for 90 minutes and we blinked early but we stayed with it,” said Head Coach Cameron Rast. “That’s a great sign of a team that has character and a team that is truly committed to getting results. This is a big win for us.”Hanley added how the victory was an important step towards climbing the conference ladder. “We have great momentum right now and its at a really important time in the season,” said Hanley. “Hopefully we can continue playing well and keep winning games.” The Broncos’ momentum was cut short on Sunday afternoon. Santa Clara lost to Portland by a score of 4-1. Santa Clara started out strong and was the first to score in the 19th minute. Senior midfielder David Torres overcame a Portland defender and crossed the ball to Cardona, who scored to give the Broncos the early advantage. The lead didn’t last long. Portland evened the score in the 37th minute after a free kick found the back of the net. The second half took a turn for the worse for Santa Clara when, in the 57th minute, defender Matt Escobar was ejected after receiving a red card. The foul gave Portland a penalty kick opportunity that resulted in another Pilot goal, giving them the first lead of the game at 2-1. The Broncos, despite being in an unfavorable position, kept fighting and had a few more chances to score in the second half. Hanley dribbled the ball down the sideline and crossed to forward Carlos Montes, who just missed heading the ball into the back of the net.Portland sealed their win in the final 16 minutes of the game with two back-to-back goals in the 75th minute that increased the score to 4-1. “The result was not what we wanted, but this is a lesson for us as a team, and we have to work hard for the next game which is luckily Portland,” said Cardona in an email. “We have to beat them at their home.The Broncos have a bye week before they return to the pitch. The squad will take on the Pilots in Portland, Ore. on Nov. 1. Contact Sydney Sanchez at ssanchez@scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.