Box Score ALISO VIEJO, Calif. – In the first road match of the 2014 season, the Caltech men's soccer team traveled to Orange County to take on Soka University. The Beavers kept the game tight for the second time in as many tries; however, the result was a 2-0 victory for the home squad.
The match was scoreless until the 33rd minute. Soka missed a corner kick but Matteo Barbiero's second effort put the home team up 1-0. Caltech upped its pressure and had a chance down the stretch of the first half to even the game, but Marec Serlin's shot missed.
"It was a good shot that was just off," said head coach Rolando Uribe. "Marec played great all day and gave us a chance."
Despite a strong end to the first half, Caltech was hit with an early second goal to begin the next stanza when Soka's Jaroslav Zapletal scored with 46:19 on the clock.
"We've improved since game one, we just couldn't find the back of the net," added Uribe. "Soka struggled at the end because we became even more competitive. We had a couple set pieces that were dangerous."
Caltech's goalie, John David Feist, again was stellar between the posts as he came up with six saves.
"JD is just really good in goal," said Uribe of Feist. "He couldn't have done anything about the two scores. And Adam Ball was good for us. He set the tone with his defense. He and Marec were both ball winners."
Soka, a member of the Cal Pac Conference, came into the contest with a 3-0 record with wins over Arizona Christian, San Diego Christian, and Bethesda. In fact, Soka has only been scored on twice now in their four games.
"These are good teams we're playing," Uribe said when asked about the competitive level of the non-NCAA opponents the Beavers have faced thus far. "We're off to a much better start than last year and our team chemistry is great."
The Beavers are on their way to northern California where they will play at Napa Valley on Friday at 4:30 pm.
"Each day is an opportunity to work," said Uribe. "We'll learn to convert."
