By Miguel Angel Lomeli
Staff Writer
The men’s soccer team had its first playoff game of the year on Nov. 9. It was also the fourth installment against Cal State Los Angeles.
The game was an immediate rematch, as the teams faced off a week before in the conference championship, where the Golden Eagles won on penalty kicks.
Dominguez Hills came out strong from the opening whistle and controlled possession for most of the first half.
Fifteen minutes into the game, the Toros already had five shots on goal, while CSULA still hadn’t even taken one.
Just as they had in the regular season, the Toros played with a higher level of physicality than the Golden Eagles.
A combination of aggressive play and steady ball control led to the Toros having a first half advantage in shots, leading 12-2. Even with six times as many shots, Dominguez Hills was unable to put a score on the board and the first half ended tied at 0.
It was in the 58th minute when Toro midfielder Adam Vargas, a junior, fired home a screamer from outside the box into the top right corner after getting the pass from sophomore Leonardo Nogueira. It was Vargas’ seventh goal of the season, and arguably the most important.
From that point on, Dominguez Hills knew they had to hold on to the lead, and they did just that. With a bend, but don’t break defense, the Toros didn’t allow any real scoring chances for CSULA.
The Toros’ defense only allowed the Golden Eagles to take a total of eight shots the entire game.
The lone goal gave the Toros the 1-0 win for its first victory this post season.
