POMONA, Calif. - When it comes to being clutch, the Broncos certainly find a way to rally at the right time. Cal Poly Pomona's 2-1 victory over the undefeated Cal State San Bernardino Friday night marked the sixth win on the season for CPP, a squad remain undefeated at 6-0-1.
In front of a program-record attendance, 982 fans packed the stands at Kellogg Field to root for a "Green and Gold" victory.
"I feel that there were a lot of great things that happened tonight," head coach
Yossi Raz said. "We were able to perform in front of a large crowd and it's a testament to the efforts of the staff and the players pulling together to represent our community, which we're very proudly doing."
The first half proved that both teams came to play and that neither was willing to back down. Both the Coyotes' and the Broncos' defenses held strong as a combined total of only five shots was allowed.
Seven minutes into the second half, goalkeeper
Fernando Pablo Quevedo found himself on the receiving end of a penalty kick from inside the 18 yard line. Despite a diving effort, he allowed his first goal of the season. Prior to tonight's game, the Broncos were the only team across all three levels of the NCAA who had not allowed a ball to touch the back of the net.
Rather than feel sorry for themselves, the Broncos' squad pulled back to even. Just one minute and 14 seconds later,
Christian Gonzalez Diaz fired one by the Coyotes' goalie. That score marked Diaz' fourth of the season.
About the goal, Raz said: "I was very impressed with the group effort and their ability to focus and unite in order to get back into the game and to get back in very quickly."
From there, the match heated up and both teams increased their number of shots. In the second half, CPP took 14 attempts but they only needed two of those to rally in front. For the eventual game winner, a series of terrific passes led to the scoring chance.
Mathew Perez crossed to
Jesus Tamayo on the right side of the goal. Then, Tamayo sent a pass back to Diaz, who was ready to put up his fifth goal of 2014 with a header that put the Broncos ahead 2-1.
Raz added: "I was impressed by our ability to push really hard to get our results against the undefeated, very quality, San Bernardino team. I think that there are a lot of great things that we saw from our group tonight and I hope that we will continue to improve as the season goes on and as we continue to represent our department and the community to the best of our abilities."
The Broncos will continue their CCAA play against the UC San Diego Tritons on Sunday at 11:30 a.m.