POMONA, Calif.- In front of a record crowd that decimates the previous attendance record, the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos men's team earned a first in program history. Thursday's 2-1 win over No. 15 Cal State L.A. marked the first time the men's soccer team has ever captured the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) regular season crown.
 
With the victory, the Broncos head into playoffs with a 16-1-1 overall record, while earning first place and a 10-1-0 record in the CCAA. CPP will now turn its attention to the start of the playoffs on Friday, Nov. 7 in Turlock. The Broncos will play in the CCAA Championships semifinal round against the winner of the 4/5 matchup of Cal State San Bernardino and Cal State Dominguez Hills.
 
Cal State L.A., who, along with the Broncos, clinched a first-round bye, end the regular season with a 9-2-0 tally in conference, good for second place. They also hold an overall mark of 13-3-0 in 2014.
 
In what proved to be not only the largest, but also the most deafening crowd ever to assemble for a men's soccer game at Kellogg Field, 1,680 fans cheered their hearts out as the Golden Eagles and the Broncos were playing for the CCAA title.
 
"I feel like tonight was a wonderful evening for Cal Poly Pomona men's soccer," said head coach Yossi Raz. "Not only did we celebrate the success of our seniors, but we earned a victory against one of the best teams in the region. Games against a team such as Cal State L.A. always provide difficult circumstances."
 
There is nary a better way to send off the seven CPP seniors, than a conference clinching 2-1 win over another nationally ranked team. Armando Ochoa, Jose Ortega, Abiel Coronado, Cory Hodge, Daniel Garcia Jr., Ian Trantow, and Daniel Asor can hold their heads up, knowing that they were a part of the first team in school history to clinch the conference.
 
The first half, the two teams played as two so highly ranked teams would, with both teams taking five shots, but neither side finding the net.
 
Halftime saw both teams even in nearly every category, five shots, three corner kicks, zero goals scored.
 
Heading into the second half, the air was filled with excitement, as fans knew that it would be an exciting half. CSULA was first to put a number on the board, Halil Tozar, the squad's assist leader, sent a corner kick that found the head of Sigifredo Torres. That goal in the 62nd minute saw Torres send the header past Fernando Pablo Quevedo and give CSULA the 1-0 lead.
 
As the Broncos have shown all year, they may have been down, but they were not out. The scoreboard was evened up at 1-1 as Armando Ochoa and Daniel Garcia Jr. added more assists to their season. A string of passes from them saw the Broncos leading goal scorer Christian Gonzalez Diaz send in a close-range shot to put the first Broncos' goal on the board. The goal marked his 9th of the year.
 
Just four minutes later at with the clock adding up to 76:10 in the game, a penalty was drawn on the Golden Eagles while they were within their penalty box. Armando Ochoa, who had already had two of his four goals this season end up as the game winning shot, would add his fifth goal of 2014. From the penalty shot spot, he sent the ball past the NCAA nationally ranked goalie, and gave the Broncos the lead.
 
"The boys were able to stick to the game plan, work hard together, and secure the CCAA title," said Raz. "Earning the title is something that I am very proud of the boys for accomplishing, and I am very excited to be a part of something so beautiful. We got to share the win with our University President, all of the administration, and with a record crowd of just under 1,700 people."
 
Try as they might, the Golden Eagles were unable to come back from the deficit as the Broncos took the victory 2-1.