CHICO, Calif. – In eight minutes and 24 seconds the Chico State men’s soccer team did what no other team had done against Cal State Dominguez Hills since opening day in 2007.
The Wildcats got goals from Zac Crim in the 52nd minute, Kevin Gibson in the 53rd minute, and Evan Armstrong in the 60th minute to shock 7th-ranked Cal State Dominguez Hills 3-1 Friday afternoon at University Soccer Stadium. The Toros, ranked No. 2 in the inaugural NCAA West Region poll, had allowed only five goals in their first 13 matches of the season. They hadn’t allowed a team to score three goals since a 3-2 loss to Concordia on Aug. 24, 2007, last year’s season opener. That’s a span of 36 matches.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats won their seventh straight home contest, matching the longest home streak since 1995. They improved to 10-2 overall and 6-2 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, undoubtedly improving their standing in the West in the process. They entered the match ranked No. 4 in the region.
The Wildcats also kept their lead atop the CCAA North Division. Sonoma State, which entered the evening trailing the Wildcats by a point in the standings, beat Cal State San Bernardino Friday to keep pace with Chico State.
Cal State Dominguez Hills, which dipped to 11-2-1 overall and 6-2-1 in the CCAA, entered the evening deadlocked with Cal State L.A. atop the South Division standings. Cal State L.A. now has the lead after beating Cal State Monterey Bay Friday.
Dominguez Hills grabbed a 1-0 lead on its first shot of the contest in the 11th minute. Carmelo Terranova tallied his second goal of the year when Jordan Rover found him running free near the top of the box. He touched it once and finessed a well-place grounder inside the near post from 18 yards out.
That would be the Toros’ only shot until their next one came with 16 minutes remaining in the match.
Chico State threatened the net on three separate occasions of the first half. Twice Kyle Crain sent well-struck free kicks into danger only to see them turned away by strong Dominguez Hills defense or an unlucky bounce. On another occasion, the Wildcats got three shots off in the mouth of the goal, culminating in one that got through the hands of Toros goalkeeper Miguel Benitez and bounced back to him off the post.
The Wildcats’ luck changed in the second half.
Crim briefly took the team’s lead in goals with his sixth of the season when he headed home Crain’s free kick at the back post. The match wasn’t tied for long. One minute and two seconds later Kevin Gibson redirected Armstrong’s long blast into the net. Armstrong created a turnover about 30 yards from the goal and quickly turned and fired, catching the defense on its heels. Gibson, meanwhile, made a quick diagonal run into the box. When Armstrong’s blast came, he neatly flicked it into the net with the side of his foot about thigh high.
The Wildcats made it 3-1 on Armstrong’s sixth goal in the 60th minute. Again, Crain’s free kick set the goal
in motion and Armstrong got a head on it and sent it into the back of the net.
Chico State has now reached double-figures in victories for the first time since 2003 with six matches still remaining in the regular season. The Wildcats host UC San Diego Sunday at 2 p.m. before finishing the home half of their schedule against Cal State Monterey Bay and San Francisco State the following weekend.
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