IRVINE, Calif. - The Eagles had their much anticipated home opener against the Cougars of Cal State San Marcos. It was an intense battle of two teams that were looking to gain some momentum for the season.
 

With both teams in need of a spark, the physicality of both the Eagles and Cougars were at high levels. 

Unfortunately for CUI, the Cougars struck first just about 19 minutes into the match off of a free kick that was guided into the net off of a one touch..

The San Marcos goal did not faze the Eagles. With about ten minutes remaining in the first half, Brian Cruz sent a ball deep to the corner where forward Caley Powers out-competed the defender to the ball and gave a nice cross to his Green and Gold brother, Andre Arendt, who gave a nice touch with his left foot right into the net.

With the game tied just seconds before the half ended, the Cougars scored again, giving the Eagles fans a scare.

However, after making some first half adjustments, CUI had something to prove to themselves and their home fans.

To start the second half, the Eagles put some pressure on the Cougars early and often, leaving the CCAA squad with no answers.Junior forward Elijah Amadin took a shot on the left side of the field that got deflected right to Powers who found the net once again for the CUI squad.

Just minutes later, Amadin had another opportunity when his teammate, Alfonso Quezada was fouled inside the box, setting his teammate up for the one on one opportunity with the keeper. With fans on the edge of their seats, Amadin calmly stepped up to the line and put the ball in the bottom right of the net.

With just over 11 minutes remaining in the game, the favored home team scored again off of a free kick with Bryan Lopez placing the ball right in the net off of a Cougar defender.

Just over one minute later, Lopez found the net again giving the Eagles a comfortable lead of 5-2. The Eagles controlled the tempo from then on, cruising to their first victory of the season.

"We had a good halftime talk, without our coaches we would not be anything," said sophomore midfielder Lopez. "Moving forward, we have Pomona on the schedule, so we have a week of hard training and discipline to get ready for them."

"We created some good chances as a team today," said coach Chris Gould. "I am really happy for the guys. They were able to get a win, a win at home, and create some momentum for the season."
 

With win number one in the books for the Green and Gold, they will look forward to keeping the ball rolling on Thursday, Sept. 19 at Cal Poly Pomona at 7:00 p.m. For the full schedule of the CUI men's soccer team, click here.