PASADENA, Calif – The Caltech men's soccer team dominated the Life Pacific University Warriors on the North Field in route to a 5-0 victory to improve its record to 4-1 on the season.
The Beavers' offense was electric as three different players accounted for the five goals scored. Junior midfielder Etienne Casanova (San Jose, calif. / Saratoga) netted two goals, junior forward Ishaan Mantripragada (Saratoga, Calif. / Harker School) scored another two goals of his own, and first year forward Matthew Luk (Bel Air, Md. / C. Milton Wright) tallied the team's fifth of the day.
The opening goal came just over five minutes into the first half as senior midfielder Alex Gogola (Houston / Strake Jesuit College Prep) created the opportunity with a pass to an open Casanova, who drove the ball past the goaltender for the score.
Caltech continued creating scoring opportunities early on with relentless pressure and crisp passing in Life Pacific's defensive zone and tallied 11 first half shots. Halfway through the first half Mantripragada netted his first of two goals and extended the Beavers' lead to 2-0. Just seven minutes after his first, Mantripragada scored again on a penalty kick. The Beavers' held onto their 3-0 lead heading into the half.
Coming out of the second half, the visiting Warriors looked to shift the momentum and pressured Caltech with early shot attempts. Goalkeeper Sam Mathews (Pepper Pike, Ohio / University) shut down the early shots and made an incredible diving save late in the second half to keep the Beavers' shutout alive.
Caltech's forwards kept up their intensity in the second half by scoring another pair of goals. The fourth goal of the game was driven in by Casanova off an assist from Luk. With just over seven minutes remaining to play, Luk found the back of the net for his first collegiate goal and solidified the team win.
"Very happy for the boys to bring home another win and another clean sheet," said head coach Duncan Gillis after the victory. "We feel good about only having conceded two goals in five games, with some good play from our back line and our goalkeepers. We were happy to see lots of guys contribute to the performance today, and great to see first-year Matt Luk get his first goal in a Caltech jersey".
The Beavers look forward to their next match when they will square off against Bethesda University this Saturday, Sep. 13 at 11 a.m. on the North Field. Follow Caltech Men's Soccer on Instagram and Caltech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram.
