Tara Struiksma

WOMEN

The Master’s College women’s soccer team’s 1-0 victory over Cal State University San Marcos was significant for a couple of reasons.

The first reason is that it was the first time since the 2013 campaign that the 18th-ranked Lady Mustangs (5-2) have beaten an opponent slotted higher than them as the Cougars entered Friday’s match ranked 15th in the NAIA.

Early in the match, Tara Struiksma (Ontario, CA) put the Lady Mustangs up 1-0 in unassisted fashion off a low left-footed shot that came from a rebound inside San Marcos’ left goal post.

After Struiksma’s lone goal, a defensive battle waged to the end of regulation play as TMC outshot the Cougars 5-0.

“Today was a great team effort as we held a team like San Marcos to zero shots,” commented head coach Curtis Lewis. “I’m really proud of our team’s overall defense. San Marcos is a dangerous team that can achieve long throw-ins, corner kicks, and set pieces. Tara had a great shot that put us up early in the game. We are looking forward to a break which will help us get ready for a very difficult start to the GSAC schedule.”

Another reason that Friday’s victory is significant is that it avenges TMC’s 1-0 loss to the Cougars in the NAIA Opening Round last November at Reese Field.

Now, the Lady Mustangs now have the opportunity to upset two more ranked squads as TMC’s next two scheduled matches are against No. 5 Concordia and No. 2 Westmont.

After a mid-season break, the Lady Mustangs will kick off conference play by taking on Concordia in Irvine on September 24 in a 2:00 PM kick off.  Following its GSAC opener, TMC will travel to Westmont Saturday, September 27, for a 2:30 PM match against the Warriors.

Game Notes:

Since opening the 2014 season, the Lady Mustangs have outscored its opponents 19-10.  Of those 19 goals, Katie Farris leads the squad with 8 goals.

Jamison Kropilak

MEN

The Master’s College men’s soccer team (2-4) cruised down to square up against red-hot Cal State San Marcos (4-1) with hopes of handing the Cougars their first loss of the 2014 season.

Six minutes into overtime, senior Jamison Kropilak (Beaverton, Oregon) stole the ball and made a play to sophomore Zach Klindworth (Valencia, CA). Klindworth then outmaneuvered CSUSM’s defense and crossed it back to Kopilak who capped things off by scoring the game-winning goal, sealing a 1-0 victory.

“I was very proud of [the Mustangs’] effort and team work,” commented head coach Jim Rickard. “We talked about trust and taking to the field the things we’ve worked on.”

After bagging their first win of the year six days prior to Friday’s match, and a long week of practice, the Mustangs came out looking like the much anticipated team prior to the season.

In the first half the Mustangs played aggressive offensively despite being outshot 4-3 by the Cougars.

However, in the second half of the match the tides began to turn.

The Cougars delivered eight shots (four on goal) to try and break open a lead on the Mustang’s keeper Kyle Cunningham (Saugus, CA), but he would not give in. The turning point came in the 62nd minute where it appeared the Cougars would take a 1-0 advantage after squibbing a kick towards the right side of the net, but Cunningham dove, and in full extension, swatted a ball away to save the Mustangs from falling behind. This would be Cunningham’s second shutout this season.

While the Cougars continued to try and break through the Mustangs’ defense, TMC held strong and upset San Marcos after regulation.

Encouraged by the well-earned result of the evening, Rickard added, “This was the confidence boost we needed as we have only one more game before conference.”

Senior Jordan Edwards (Anchorage, AK) placed two shots on goal while Klindworth added two shots as well.

TMC will look to continue their winning run as they turn their attention to another road match against Menlo College (1-1-1) on Monday.

The Mustangs kick off at 2:00 p.m in Atherton.