The UC Irvine Men’s Soccer team (4-6-1, 1-2-0) lost to UC Riverside (3-5-2, 1-1-1) 0-1 in a dramatic last minute of play at the UC Riverside Soccer Stadium on Oct. 9.
After capturing their first conference victory last week against UC Davis, the ‘Eaters looked to carry momentum into Riverside as The Highlanders looked to turn things around after a loss to Sacramento State.
UCI’s first goal came from graduate midfielder Samuel Atiye as he attempted a difficult shot from outside the box early in the game, scouring wide right.
In a nail biting play, UCR freshman defender Oscar Emilio Trujillo Lizárraga dribbled across the box and delivered a grounder while fading away to his left. The shot was saved by UCI senior goalkeeper Paul Jing to keep the score even.
The physicality of conference play showed in the midfield and reached a high when UCI graduate midfielder Francesco Montanile went down with an injury. Montanile was helped off the field, unable to put weight on his left leg.
In the second half, UC Riverside applied pressure to the ‘Eaters by pressing up higher, making it difficult for the Anteaters to get the ball out of their defensive territory. The Highlanders controlled possession and expanded their offensive opportunities with this tactic.
After a failed clearance attempt from UCI, Juodkunaitis found himself with nothing but grass between him and the goalkeeper. After a few touches, Jing attempted a tackle just outside the box, clipping the UC Riverside midfielder in the process. Jing was awarded a red card and taken out of the game, replaced by redshirt sophomore defender Abraham Brown — who sported the goalkeeper gear for the first time.
The ensuing free kick, taken by Juodkunaitis, hit the wall of UCI players and bounced in front of the Highlanders who attempted a shot off the rebound. The ball clanged off the top crossbar, keeping the game scoreless.
Despite normally being a defender, Brown excelled in his short time at the goalkeeper position. When Juodkunaitis blasted a missile from almost midfield, Brown deflected the ball out after a leaping dive to the right.
With only 10 men on defense, UCR doubled down on the UCI defense, which was already on the back foot. However, this left open the opportunity for counterattacks, giving Irvine more opportunities to score despite the handicap.
Freshman forward Marcus Lee utilized his speed to counterattack and had multiple opportunities in transition. One of these saw Lee dribble across the box and fire a rocket that deflected off a Riverside defender.
After surviving constant offensive pressure from Riverside, it seemed as though Irvine would escape with a draw. However, in the final minute of play, UCR attacked the right side of the field before crossing into the middle. Out of the chaos of both teams fighting for the ball, UCR sophomore midfielder Ethan Gonzalez found the ball in front of him and fired a shot into the back net, stealing a victory and devastating the Anteaters.
Irvine ended the game with a disadvantage in total shots, 7-9. UCI was unable to put a shot on target, a result of UCR’s stifling defense and high-octane offense.
With the loss, Irvine falls to 1-2 in Big West Conference play. The ‘Eaters tried to even their conference record against a tough, nationally ranked UC Santa Barbara team at Anteater Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 12, but lost 0-1.
Jordan Hum is a Sports Intern for the fall 2024 quarter. He can be reached at jrhum@uci.edu.