By Ron Smith
September 21, 2024
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Two undefeated men's soccer teams took the field in the first game of the 15th Heritage Club Classic and both left unbeaten after a 2-2 tie between the Cougars of Cal State San Marcos (4-0-2) and the Warriors of Westmont (2-0-3).
 
"San Marcos is a really good team," said Westmont's head coach Morgan Cathey. "They are ahead of where they were last year and I think we are as well."
 
The Cougars came out of the gate aggressively with six shots - including three on goal - in the first 10 minutes of play.
 
"We had a slow start," acknowledged Cathey. "We put ourselves under pressure right from the start, which wasn't ideal against that team. They are a team that doesn't give away a lot. They have a good ability to get in behind you and force you to have to turn and defend. They were really dangerous on set pieces.
 
"Brady Highfill made a couple of outstanding saves early on to keep us in the game. It is crazy that those saves are normal for him. After the first 10 minutes, we settled in really well and created some good chances."
 
The Cougars – who are coached by Westmont alumnus Ron Pulvers ('94) - drew first blood in the 23rd minute of play. Stefano Brunetto crossed the ball from the left side of the pitch to the front of the goal where Riley Patterson redirected it into the net from the top of the six-yard box.
 
Westmont responded with just 10 seconds remaining in the opening frame. Alex Reyes served in a ball from the right corner that found the head of Leonel Olivo Ortiz at the far post. Olivo Ortiz' header skirted inside the left upright for his first goal of the year.
 
"Obviously, getting the equalizer right at the end of the half was really nice," noted Cathey. "To get that goal changes everything. We went into halftime and our players felt good about themselves. It was frustrating for San Marcos' players to concede a goal like that right at the end.
 
"In the second half, I thought we were the better team – we created more chances," assessed Cathey. "Unfortunately, we gave up a goal on a mistake, but our guys responded and created really good chances."
 
Just a minute and one-half into the second period, the Cougars retook the lead on a goal by Ryan Meinardus, The Cougar midfielder stole the ball from a Warrior defender, then went one-on-one with Highfill, scoring from 17 yards out.
 
That goal gave the Cougars a 2-1 lead, which they held until the 66th minute of play. That's when Westmont found the equalizer.
 
Westmont's Luis Cortez dribbled the ball down the left flank before passing forward to Yordan Marinov outside the 18-yard box. After eluding a defender, Marinov sent a line drive into the box where Olivo Ortiz used his left foot to one-touch it into the net, recording his second goal of the game and the season.
 
"There were moments and spells where we were really good," offered Cathey. "I think we need to understand how we can be more dangerous. Even in the second half, I thought there were so many more opportunities to put the ball into dangerous areas and we didn't do it. We kept circulating the ball when it was on to expose them in space. We are still in the early days (of the season) so we are still in process. Definitely, I thought we took another good step in some big moments of the game."
 
With the win, the Warriors extended their unbeaten streak to 12 games (8-0-4), dating back to November 8, 2023.
 
On Monday, Westmont will conclude play in the Heritage Club Classic by hosting the Gators of San Francisco State (0-2-2). Kick-off is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. The Gators played in the second game of the day, falling to Vanguard (1-1-1) by a score of 3-2.
 
On Tuesday, Westmont will play its final game of the non-conference season when they head to Westwood to take on the Bruins of UCLA (3-2-3).