Box Score
(Moraga, CA) – San Francisco men's soccer wrapped up a grueling stretch of the schedule with a hard-fought 2-1 double overtime setback to longtime Bay Area rival Saint Mary's in West Coast Conference action Friday afternoon at Saint Mary's Stadium. Playing in their fourth match in nine days, the Dons (6-9-2, 4-5-1 WCC) seemed to run out of gas late despite some heroic performances against the league-leading Gaels (6-5-5, 6-2-2 WCC).
Nathan Arambula broke the deadlock in the opening minute of the second overtime period, extending Saint Mary's unbeaten streak against the Dons to seven matches. Two of San Francisco's last three matches have required overtime.
"The kids gave everything they had," USF head coach Erik Visser said. "The last three games they've battled. They've been in every game, but they have not been able to finish them off. It's a young team that gives a great effort, but just have not developed the maturity to close out games. We have also been very unlucky. If the kids give us an effort like this in our last two games, I am confident we will get some points."
Tom Mohoric made it 1-0 Saint Mary's early with a goal in the ninth minute. Sophomore forward Tanner Smith provided the equalizer in the 40th minute off a corner kick by freshman midfielder Taylor Krueger. The game remained deadlocked for the next 60 minutes, setting the stage for Arambula's first goal of the season.
Saint Mary's owned a 17-4 shots advantage for the contest, 9-4 in shots on target. The Gaels held a 7-5 edge in corner kicks.
Junior goalkeeper Brendan Roslund suffered the loss despite a strong showing for the Dons. The Colorado native recorded seven saves. Doug Herrick earned the win for the Gaels and made three saves.
San Francisco closes out the 2011 regular season when it travels to the Pacific Northwest to take on Portland and Gonzaga, beginning Friday, November 11 in the Rose City against the Pilots. Match time against Portland is set for 7:00 PM at Merlo Field.
