SMC Men's Soccer Falls to SBCC in Final Game of Season
On November 15, the Santa Monica College (SMC) Corsairs Men's Soccer team concluded their season with a final conference match-up against the Santa Barbara College Vaqueros.
In the first half, the Corsairs were constantly on their heels against the Vaqueros from Santa Barbara. The Corsairs goalie stopped over 10 shots, and unfortunately could not stop all the shots. The Vaqueros scored on a strike by Lonnie Spector at the end of the first half, and he proceeded to taunt and mock the Corsairs bench, resulting in a yellow card penalty. Yellow cards were a constant as both teams displayed bad sportsmanship.
By far, most of the offensive action was at the Vaqueros striking zone. The Vaqueros outplayed the Corsairs in the first half of the match, ending the half in a 1-0 lead from the Vaqueros.
The second half began with a slow start from both teams. Action began when Vaqueros defender Wayne Mcclellan fouled a Corsairs offensive player, which resulted in a penalty kick for the Corsairs. Unfortunatly, this penalty kick was missed which resulted in a lost opportunity for the Corsairs. Quickly thereafter, the Vaqueros scored on a amazing long pass by Fernando Ochoa.
With less than two minutes remaining, another Vaqueros yellow card resulted in the Corsairs conversion of a penalty kick by Eto Atiabet.
The Corsairs Head Coach Tim Pierce stated that the season "ended with numerous ups/downs and an inability to score,", that showed itself in their matchup against Santa Barbara.
Corsairs Midfielder Issac Gonzalez acknowledged, "tightening of teamwork was needed... they needed to create bonds."
Corsairs Forward Eto Atiabet stated that "the team had serious needs, both offensively and defensively."
The Santa Barbara college Vaqueros assistant coach, Matt Wilkinson, was "looking forward to the announcement of the next week's playoff seedings." In addition, he said, "that the character of the team leads to a highly successful season." Wilkinson was substituting for head coach John Sisterson, a veteran who's been coaching for 13 years but who was unavailable to attend this league game. No reason was given for his absence, but his assistants nonetheless coach admirable to secure Santa Barbara's placement in the playoffs.
The regular season ended with the Vaqueros enjoying a 2-1 victory over the host Corsairs. The Vaqueros will continue to play in the postseason playoffs while the Corsairs will have the offseason to reflect on their 2019 season.