The Bakersfield College men’s soccer club played their first game of the season against Loyola Marymount University soccer club. The game was played at the BC soccer fields and was scheduled to be played at 1 p.m., however, the game began earlier because the referees were unable to start at 1 p.m.
Instead, the game began at noon.
Loyola jumped to a quick start keeping the BC men’s soccer club playing in a hole the entire first half.
Loyola entered the halfway point up 3-1 on BC.
In the second half, the game became more competitive as BC rallied.
BC came alive in the second half of the game tallying up three goals, and tying Loyola only to watch the comeback fall short by allowing Loyola to score three more goals of their own.
BC was able to score three goals, but fell short of the comeback and lost 6-4.
Pete Fox, a BC coach, was pleased with how the team played its first game despite the team falling short of a victory.
Edgar Moreno, who plays right mid-fielder for BC, contributed with three assists in the loss. “Just the normal plays that the coach showed us; stay open and make the runs like you’re supposed to,” said Moreno, referring to how he was able to make those assists.
“We played alright, but I think we can play better,” noted Moreno.
Jesse Ramirez, who plays right wing, scored BC’s first goal of the game. “The help from my teammates, all the passing, the good switches, and they gave me the ball in a good open area, and I just got the shot off,” said Ramirez.
Ramirez likes the fact that the team never put its head down and they kept working. “We lost the tie, but overall everyone was working hard, and we kept on going,” added Ramirez.
Ramirez noted that one thing the team needs to improve on is the overall fitness.
Pete Fox also stated that the team needs more work on its fitness. “We are not as fit as we can be,” Fox said, and also said that some of the advantages that Loyola took were due in part to the lack of fitness on the BC side. “It was a good competitive match, we learned some things, we see what our difficulties are,” Fox said.
“I’m pleased with the spirit of the play, I’m pleased with the attitude, the work ethic of the boys, but then again there is those few incidents where we lack concentration,” said Fox.
After the game, BC hosted a small barbecue and fans in attendance were allowed to eat with the team.
BC will host the CSUB Coyote soccer club next on Oct. 11 at the BC soccer fields and the match is scheduled for 1 p.m.
The BC men’s soccer club players currently have to pay out of pocket for their matches and are looking for sponsors.