The Long Beach City College men's soccer team returned to its home pitch on Friday evening to face off against the Cerritos College Falcons in a high impact, intensity-driven South Coast Conference (SCC) matchup. With both teams not holding any edge over one another, the Vikings final strung together a successful link in the 70th minute of action en route to a must-win, 1-0 victory to keep their playoff hopes alive.
The game was infested with high-energy play and eagerness for the victory. It was evident early, as sophomore defender Hector Solis ripped off the first shot of the game just a minute in. Freshman forward Nicholas Vazquez tried his head a handful of minute later, but to no avail.
Freshman goalkeeper Saul Ocampo started off the night on a hot streak by reeling in three saves and he continued to catch fire as the night progressed.
While continuing to lead the defensive initiatives, Rojo got in on the saving action as well in the 31st minute by filling in for Ocampo when he was briefly caught off his line to preserve the scoreless tie. Sophomore defender Irving Alvarado and freshman defender Anthony Gonzalez leaded Rojo a strong helping hand to keep the game gridlocked at 0-0.
LBCC took a defensive mentality into the second half to begin with by preserving their defensive third, thus opening up their offensive scheme. It took Long Beach until the 70th minute to fire off its first shot of the second half, but it the patience paid dividends. Freshman forward Jorge Garcia took a pass from freshman defender Christopher Ribet and slotted it far post of the outside of his foot to grab a 1-0 lead.
After the Long Beach score, Cerritos began to apply the pressure on full blast. Ocampo rode to the occasion and five saves on potential goals with one coming on a free kick just outside of the box. Cerritos reared back and fired a shot in attempts to bend a shot into the top right corner of the box. Ocampo left his feet and made an outstretched save to preserve the lead and eventually reel in after extra time.
Ocampo highlighted the efforts with nine saves in a shutout victory. Garcia notched the lone score, while Ribet assisted on the efforts.
Head Coach Cameron Beaulac was proud of his squad, but emphasized that the season is still in tender form.
"The resilience is what carried us through," said Beaulac. "It takes hard work and effort and the boys put out the heart and effort to at least stay alive for another game."
With multiple guys stepping up and playing with passion, it is hard to pinpoint the exact driving factor.
"It has taken a while to get [the guys] to understand the mental aspect of the game. We are coming along now where it matters."
The Vikings (5-8-6, 4-2-1 SCC) will continue their hunt for the playoffs by facing off against ECC-Compton on the road Tuesday, November 8 at 3 p.m.