In their first competitive action of 2022, every active player on the UCSB men’s soccer roster saw the pitch as the Gauchos claimed a 4-1 win in Sunday’s preseason tune-up at San Jose State.
UCSB split the scrimmage into three 30-minute parts, experimenting with different lineups every half hour on the clock. The result was four different goalscorers, four players with an assist, and all four Gaucho keepers seeing time in goal.
“Four goals is good, but realistically we could have had four more just from the quality chances that we had,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “It was certainly a fun game to watch. We have a lot of things to work on, but it was good that we were able to get everyone in the game today.”
UCSB finished with eight shots on goal, the first coming in the eighth minute when midfielder Lucas Gonzalez opened the scoring.
“I didn’t think that we necessarily got off to a good start. We missed a lot of passes, but we had good combination play in the wide areas which led to our first goal,” said Vom Steeg. “Alexis (Ledoux) played it into Lucas who made a run from the opposite end of the field, and it was one of the first few times in the first half that we actually combined.”
The Spartans tied it at 1-1 in the 22nd minute on a goal by Angel Iniguez, but the Gauchos’ chances would come more consistently as the game went on. Forward Salvador Aguilar found the back of the net on an assist by midfielder Filip Basili in the 43rd.
Playing with a really high back line, SJSU conceded once more in the 67th minute. Newcomer Eddie Villeda burned the home side down the left side, taking a ball over the top and scoring on somewhat of a breakaway as he beat the keeper to his left to make it 3-1.
The scoring was capped in the 84th. While he normally operates in a central defensive role in the midfield, sophomore Filip Basili made a late run into the box and found the back of the net for UCSB’s fourth and final goal of the day.
The Gauchos will be back home at Harder Stadium this Saturday for their annual Community Shield Game against Westmont at 7 pm. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
Michael Jorgenson writes about sports for UCSB.
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