BOX SCORE #11 Cal State L.A. 2, Sonoma State 1 -- Box Score
TURLOCK, Calif. -- Brenton Frame scored a goal in the 18th minute to knot the match at one goal apiece, but Cal State L.A. scored the go-ahead goal just over 10 minutes later and it held up to be the eventual game-winner as the Sonoma State men's soccer team was eliminated from the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championship Tournament with the 2-1 loss on Friday afternoon in Turlock. The Seawolves (10-5-4) saw their eight-match unbeaten streak come to an end and their NCAA playoff hopes all but dashed.
The Golden Eagles (13-1-5) extend their unbeaten streak to 14 games in advancing to Sunday's CCAA championship game against UC San Diego, which defeated Chico State 2-1 in overtime in the other men's semifinal on Friday.
While Sonoma's NCAA playoff hopes are slim, its fate is still undecided, but the Seawolves will have to wait until Monday at 4:00 pm when the NCAA announces the tournament field via a live selection show on NCAA.com.
Watch the postgame interview with SSU head men's soccer coach
Marcus Ziemer here.
It was a quick start for top-seeded and 11th-ranked Cal State L.A. on Friday as it struck for its first goal just 65 seconds after kickoff on a beautiful passing sequence that resulted in a goal by Tobias Tobrant. Juan Ochoa started the play with a pass to Andre Bissmark, who got the ball to Tobrant, who shot over SSU keeper
Beau Diaz for his fifth goal of the season. Ochoa picked up his team-high sixth assist, while Bissmark recorded his fifth assist.
The Golden Eagles' lead didn't last too long because Sonoma State got the equalizer in the 18th minute. A long pass from
Aaron Glover to
Brenton Frame that Frame headed into the goal for his second score of the season.
Cal State L.A. responded well to the game-tying goal and began to generate some pressure that soon resulted in the go-ahead goal. A failed clearance by Sonoma State was stolen by Abel Teferi, who drilled a long shot through some traffic inside the near post for his first goal of the season in the 29th minute.
The Golden Eagles kept the pressure on early in the second half and had a couple of good chances before the defense clamped down on the Seawolves, allowing only two shots in the second period, one that was blocked and one by
Sean Callahan that was saved by CSULA netminder Mike Beigarten in the 79th minute. That was the last shot Sonoma State would get despite intense offensive pressure in the final minutes.
Diaz made three saves in the loss, two of which came in the first half. As a team, the Seawolves held a 7-6 shot advantage in the first half, but the Golden Eagles eventually outshot SSU in the match, 10-9. Diaz's counterpart, Beigarten, also made three stops on Friday.
It was Sonoma State's first appearance in the CCAA tournament since 2010 when the squad took home the championship banner.