ROHNERT PARK—And they're off! And the Chico State men's soccer team is out of the gates beautifully thanks to a 2-1 victory at Sonoma State Friday afternoon in the California Collegiate Athletic Association opener for both teams. Preston Moll and Adrian Fontanelli scored their first goals for Chico State while helping limit the Seawolves to two shots on goal.
 
It marked the latest in a long stretch of strong soccer played by the Wildcats at the home of their rivals. Chico State is now 3-2-1 in Rohnert Park since the start of 2011. The Wildcats are also 4-1-1 in the last six matchups between the rivals.  
 
The Wildcats, who entered the weekend ranked No. 8 in the West Region, will now head to San Francisco State for Sunday's 11:30 a.m. showdown with a record of 4-2-2 overall and 1-0-0 in the CCAA. Links to live stats and a live broadcast on the CCAA Network can be found at www.chicowildcats.com in the calendar section on the homepage and on the women's soccer schedule page. Access to the live video stream requires a subscription fee that grants users access to every CCAA event, home and away, on the network. Sonoma State, ranked No. 9 in the West, slipped to 3-3-2.
 
Chico State opened the scoring on Moll's free kick from 25 yards out from the end line and three yards outside of the near post. Miles Rice drew the foul after taking a throw in and then spinning to lose a defender. He was grabbed and slowed with two hands, resulting in the whistle.
 
Facing a four-man wall, Moll rolled a shot just beyond the last man, and with Trevor Fritz flashing in front of the keeper on a run toward the near post, the goalkeeper froze momentarily, giving just enough time for the ball to roll inside the far post for a 1-0 lead in the 15^th minute. The goal was Moll's first as a Wildcat after spending one year at San Jose State.
 
Fontanelli helped set the stage for his goal a little more than 10 minutes later. The midfielder volleyed the ball ahead and Liam Duerksen flicked it on to Kameron Kascht, who was eventually cut down in the box to draw the penalty. Kascht cut back across the grain to retain possession and continued to dribble along the top of the box. He then dribbled into the box near its edge before attacking back inside at an angle. The defender slid to try to knock the ball away, but took down Kascht instead. Fontanelli was ready when the whistle blew, and with the keeper diving to his right, Fontanelli drilled a low liner to the opposite side for a 2-0 edge.
 
Fritz and Avery Huggins each played the full 90, anchoring the Wildcats' back line.