By Jacob Norling
October 8, 2022
 
(SANTA CLARITA, Calif.) Westmont Men's Soccer (6-1-2, 1-1-1 GSAC) collected their first GSAC win of the season on Saturday after defeating The Master's (2-7-2, 0-3) by a score of 5-1. The Mustangs drew first blood on Saturday, scoring in the sixth minute of the match, but Westmont responded with five unanswered goals to ultimately capture the victory.
 
"This was a very good result today," said Westmont head coach Dave Wolf. "We've been challenging the guys this week, talking about how we hadn't gotten a road win yet. We've had some solid road performances and some acceptable results, but none of those had fully gone our way yet.
 
"We told the guys, 'if you want to do something this year, you're going to have to demonstrate some capability to win on the road'. Getting today's result was a good step."
 
In the sixth minute, TMU's Kristjan Reci opened the scoring by getting the final touch on a batted-around ball in the six-yard box. After a free kick from 40 yards out was sent in, the ball ricocheted off of a handful of men, before darting off of Reci and into the back of the net.
 
In the 26th minute, Connor Lynch found the equalizer when he broke through with the first goal of his sophomore season. Erik Guerrero sent in a left-footed cross from the far side of the pitch that drifted all the way to the near-sideline.
 
On the receiving end was another left-footer, Michael Palmer, who elected to send a cross with his right foot this time, hooking the ball towards the top of the six-yard box. Waiting for it was Lynch, who one-touched the ball to the back of the net for the equalizer.
 
"That was the key moment of the game today," said Wolf. "We conceded that early goal, which isn't ideal, especially on the road. The response our team had was calm, and we produced some good quality football after we conceded.
 
"There was a lot of relief all around, especially for Connor, when he hit the back of the net. From there, we pushed pretty emphatically. Emotionally, that goal almost counted for double because of who scored it, and when we scored it. That was the individual highlight of our day."
 
Less than ten minutes after Lynch's equalizer, freshman Erik Guerrero continued his stellar freshman campaign when he put Westmont on top 2-1. From nearly 25 yards out, Guerrero quickly turned nothing into something when he evaded on an oncoming Mustang and saw an opportunity to fire.
 
In the center of the pitch, Guerrero got room to breathe for one stride, which was all he needed. With his ever-dangerous left foot, Guerrero fired a shot off the hand of a diving Kian Bensend and inside the right-post, putting Westmont up 2-1 with his fourth goal of the season.
 
"Erik has been outstanding," nodded Wolf. "During one of the first water breaks, Erik told me 'coach, there's somebody following me everywhere I go'. My response was, 'get used to it'.
 
"We're going to have to help him figure out a way to get himself loose and play with a bit more variety. He just has a special quality about him, and a really nice left foot. He's going to keep drawing attention."
 
Following Guerrero's goal, the two sides remained scoreless for nearly 40 minutes, but in the final twenty minutes of the match, Westmont put away the Mustangs for good.
 
In the 73rd minute, junior Matthew Morgan collected his first goal in a collegiate uniform when Lynch fed the former on a run to top-edge of the box. Morgan found the pass in stride, and had a one-on-one with Bensend in the box.
 
When Bensend charged off his line, Morgan calmly beat the keeper to inside of his far post, sending Westmont's bench into a frenzy as the fan-favorite got on the board.
 
"Matty was under a minute restriction today because he's working through an injury right now," began Wolf, "but he was chomping at the bit to get in there. By the time he got on the field, he was full of energy and ready to go.
 
"It was Connor who found him, and you know what, Matty finished that ball like he was Erik Guerrero."
 
In the 79th minute, Guerrero once again added a clip to his highlight reel. On this occasion, Braeden Pryor possessed the ball in a crowded far-side of the 18-yard box, and as several defenders drew to him, the shot-creator quickly scanned the pitch.
 
Jogging towards the top of the box was Guerrero, who Pryor rolled a ball to on a tee. Then, the left-footer blasted a shot to the upper-right corner of the net, putting Westmont up 4-1.
 
To cap it all off, freshman John Ruetschle collected his first goal of the season in the 81st minute. Off of a corner from the far side of the pitch, Ruetschle met the ball in mid-air five yards from the goal line, and volleyed the ball to the back of the net for the final goal of the day.
 
"John, like a lot of our young players, hasn't had many opportunities to be on the field," offered Wolf. "Similar to Matty, when we were finally able to call John's number, he was ready. There was a real sharpness and aggression to him, and I was delighted to see him get on the scoresheet.
 
"John is a guy who's worked really hard all year and without a lot of return on that investment. It was nice to him get to be a part of things"
 
Westmont returns to the pitch on Thursday, October 13, when they host Life Pacific at 3:15 p.m. on Thorrington Field. Links to tickets and live coverage will be available on the Westmont Athletics website.