Oregon State
California
Beavers Fall to No. 4/3 Cal 3-0
November 08, 2013 | Men's Soccer
CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon State men's soccer team fell 3-0 to No. 4/3 California Friday afternoon at Paul Lorenz Field.
“We kept the game tied at zero at halftime, going against a very good team,” said head coach Steve Simmons. “We just gave up one goal at the beginning of the second half, and from there we had to chase the game. As we pressed forward, we created some chances, but at the same time we left ourselves open, and they scored on two counters. Now we just have to regroup and get ready for Sunday.”
Cal recorded 13 shots in the opening frame, but sophomore goalkeeper Matt Bersano was up to the challenge, tallying 10 saves in the first stanza to keep the game tied at zero heading into the intermission.
Cal opened the scoring early in the second half off a set-piece. Seth Casiple whipped a corner kick into the box that found Steve Birnbaum, who headed the ball into the net to give the Golden Bears a 1-0 lead in the 49th minute.
The Beavers pressed forward in search of the equalizer, but Cal was able to take advantage, scoring twice on counter-attacks. The Bears found the net in the 78th minute, when Dylan Serrano took the ball down the left flank, before playing a cross to Omid Jalali. Jalali headed the ball past the keeper to extend the Cal lead to two.
The Bears scored again less than five minutes later. Stefano Bonomo played a through-ball that found Jalali at the top of the penalty area. Jalali proceeded to fire a shot into the side-netting to close out the scoring.
Bersano finished with 12 saves, tying Packy Deenihan for the second-highest single game total in Oregon State history. With his performance on Friday, Bersano now has 88 saves on the season, moving him up to sixth on the Oregon State single-season list. He sits just 12 saves behind Peter Billmeyer's single-season record of 100.
The Beavers will return to action Sunday when they take on Stanford at Paul Lorenz Field. The match will begin at 1 p.m.
