ROHNERT PARK, CALIF. - On Thursday, October 27th, the Sonoma State men's soccer team came up with a season deciding 1-1 draw to send them to the CCAA Tournament for the second straight year! After recording back-to-back wins last weekend to keep their chances alive, they needed a win or a draw to secure a spot. 

After a scoreless first half with minimal action, head coach Marcus Ziemer and his squad were on the right track. However, they ran into some trouble just four minutes into the second half as SF State scored a great goal on a near post cross that was flicked in past the Seawolves keeper. Stunned, Sonoma State would fight to stay in it but generated few chances as the game entered the final 15 minutes and still needing a goal to clinch a postseason spot.

As the game neared the final 10 minutes, freshman winger Michael Gray began to get some traction on the right side and generate some dangerous chances in front of the Gators net. Sonoma State would get a chance in the 80th minute and take it with conviction as Gray was played in on the right side and beat his defender to the end line. Gray would hammer a hard cut back pass towards the penalty spot and in would storm senior midfielder Bryan Rosales as he smashed the one-time shot into the roof of the net to tie the game and erupt the Seawolf crowd. 

Rosales rushed to the crowd side in celebration as Sonoma State scored their crucial equalizer to once again put them in the tournament bracket. The Seawolves defense would fend off some dangerous crosses in the final 10 minutes and draw some key fouls but would ultimately hold on for the 1-1 tie, clinching them the 6th seed in the CCAA Tournament, their second straight conference tournament appearance.

Rosales played the hero for SSU today as he not only recorded the team's season saving goal in the 80th minute, but would take hold of the team lead with four goals on the season. Seniors Matt Walleigh and Jason Hernandez gutted out 90-minute performances to anchor the Seawolves back line. Captain Sean Rohane also recorded his 5th 90-minute game this season and recorded two shots. Forward Oliver Ziemer was very effective in the second half with some tight combination play outside the Gators penalty box and even nearly drew a penalty minutes after SSU's equalizing goal. 

In back-to-back seasons, Ziemer and his squad have needed some key results in the final two weeks of regular season play to earn a postseason spot and have been able to do just that, winning their final four regular season games last year and winning two of their final three games this year. SSU will play in their second consecutive CCAA Tournament and will head south, to take on the nationally ranked Broncos of Cal Poly Pomona who will represent the #3 seed. 

Game times, tickets, live stat links, and additional tournament information can all be found at sonomaseawolves.com or at the link HERE. Sonoma State will take on Cal Poly Pomona this Sunday, October 30th at 12:00 PM at Kellogg Field and the game can also be streamed LIVE on the CCAA Network. 

Today was also senior day for the 2022 Sonoma State men's soccer seniors. We would like to honor and congratulate all seven seniors, Nathan Arnott, Nick Battung, Luis Carrillo, Jason Hernandez, Bryan Rosales, Ulysses Vega, and Matt Walleigh. To read more about your SSU seniors head to sonomaseawolves.com/msocseniors. 

Sonoma State improves to 7-7-4 overall and finishes CCAA play 4-5-2. Be sure to follow your Seawolves on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get all the latest SSU athletics updates and information. Sonoma State athletics also has launched a new fan app in partnership with From Now On. Download the free app today in both the Apple and Google Play stores by searching Sonoma State Seawolves in the app store. @SonomaSeawolves | #NomaNation