SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Vanguard men's soccer stepped on PLNU Soccer Field on Wednesday afternoon, injury riddled, with their season ventures well in question. The Blue and Gold, however, didn't sell themselves short amid cagey circumstances, as the Lions rolled over the defending champions Point Loma 3-0, handing the Sea Lions their worst loss since 2018 to keep the Pacific West Conference postseason push alive. It was also VU's first win against PLNU since October, 2011.
VU's spirited effort was highlighted by a clinical first half with all three of their goals coming inside the first 21 minutes of gametime. PacWest Player of the Week,
Zander Zill pinched the opener for his fourth goal of the campaign, which now ties his teammate
Xavier Alcantar for most freshman goals in the conference.
Luke Parker put the second on the board to double VU's advantage and
Robert Ronco put the nail in the coffin for VU's third and his fifth of the year. The graduate student's 23rd career goal ties him for ninth all-time in program history with Sebastian Cortez (17-18).
"We got back to who we are today," shared Head Coach Jesus Chuy Miramontes. We defended well against a great team and put away our chances. We were also down a few players and some freshman stepped up to play some big minutes. We dug deep and every player really contributed to the shutout. Proud of this team's effort. Jobs not done!"
The Lions go 3-1 on the four-game road trip, improving to 6-7-2 and 5-2-1 in league action. Loma loses its first match in four tries, dropping to 8-4-3, 5-2. VU holds a narrow one-point lead atop the table. Though with the remainder of the cast having games on hand over the Lions, it will be up to the Blue and Gold to take care of business in their final match of the regular season against Biola and keep their eyes on the conference scoreboard to watch results from around the league.
What Happened? The first half was 5-4 shot lead for Point Loma, but the hosts were far from comfortable after the opening whistle. Loma posted the first shot but had a hard time in their buildup play with VU squeezing the space out of the middle. VU forced an early turnover, and Ronco came toward it, carrying the ball square across the box from the left wing, before he was fouled at the edge of the area.
Positioned at the left diagonal of the penalty area, Zill and
Kevin Abarca locked eyes with a four-man Loma wall. It was Zill who stepped up to take the strike, slicing the low shot past the wall and tucking the finish in the bottom right corner to open the scoring in the sixth minute. It was just the third time Loma conceded first at home this season.
The Sea Lions searched for a quick response after the restart, with a shot sent straight toward
Caleb Johnson in goal. Vanguard would score two goals in two minutes however, to sink PLNU's hope of ever getting back into the game.
The second goal started with
Leonardo Villacorta at the back, as the big center half launched a high-flying long ball past midfield and toward the Sea Lion back line. Ronco, who was initially in an offside position, cleverly let the ball run, a simple move which offset the Loma defense. Both teams played a game of juggle as the Sea Lions failed to clear the initial ball. The ball was fought for by
Tyler Williams, before it finally dropped to the top of the area for Parker. The sophomore met the ball and trekked forward finally smashing the half volley with venom, as the laser of a shot pointed off a PLNU deflection and swished off the side netting to the bottom right.
Despite two minutes between goals two and three, both sides settled into a slight reprieve after Loma's first VAR Review to disallow the goal proved unsuccessful.
VU were back in the hunt and back in goal scoring form soon after the restart. A similar recipe for the goal, with a much more polished execution.
Loma was building up possession from the left wing and crossed midfield when Parker engaged the ball and put in a tackle to get possession back with VU. The ball made its way to
Henry Garcia who slotted a pass square to Alcantar. The first-time ball from the bottom of the center-circle was perfectly weighted, as Alcantar hit a beauty over the top. Ronco ran onto it between the Sea Lion center backs and the veteran strike punished Jeremy Caringella off his line, with a first-time 30-yard clip over the top for 3-0 Vanguard.
The second half only saw two VU shots to PLNU's nine. The Sea Lions looked most influential in the first 15 minutes, with Johnson making key stops in a wicked three-minute PLNU span. The hosts' free kick in the 50th minute found Owen Riecke at the back post, and the powerful header was on its way to the top corner before Johnson thrashed it wide.
The freshman keeper was called into action less than a minute later, after the PLNU corner kick, created a long-range strike spearing toward the left side netting, that Johnson also badgered away.
Loma managed four shots in eight minutes but never beat Johnson. The VU bench also played a strong role, with freshman such as
Ben Myers,
Ryan Pilkenton, and
Angel Santoyo netting some of their highest minute totals of the season. PLNU did manage to score in the 67th minute but saw the goal disallowed for offside, leading to an unsuccessful challenge in the final key moments of VU's crucial 3-0 road trip.
What's Next? The Lions will need all three points in the final regular season game of the season against Biola next Wednesday, October 28 at 1:30 p.m.
