Gonzaga University
San Diego
Men's Soccer Ends Home Season
10/31/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 31, 2004
SPOKANE, Wash. - Gonzaga University's men's soccer team did something it hadn't done all year on Sunday - score a goal in a match and lose.
But that was the case as the University of San Diego ruined Senior Day with a 3-1 West Coast Conference victory at Martin Field.
The Bulldogs (6-11-0; 2-7-0) previous 10 losses this season had been via shutout.
The Toreros (6-7-3; 3-4-2) scored the first goal of the match at 4:27 when Kevin Meissner scored his first goal of the season, a short kick from in the box off a corner by Brett Hiroto.
It didn't take the Bulldogs long to knot things. Senior forward Arni Pjetursson launched a 30-yard free kick from in front of the USD bench that went high over the wall of defenders and curled into the upper left corner of the goal for his fifth goal of the season. It was also the 15th goal of his career to move him into sole possession of seventh on the all-time GU list.
Meissner scored what proved to be the winning goal at 29:51 when a pass from Ryan Guy was deflected and found Meissner at the right of the box for the shot in traffic.
USD's insurance tally came from Michael Caso on a wide open look as Gonzaga keeper Sean Sosnovec tried to field a thru ball by Kevin Wilson, dropped the ball and the opportunistic Caso didn't waste anytime burying it into the lower left side of the net at 61:01.
Both teams had excellent scoring chances throughout the match, especially in the opening half. Just minutes after his goal, Pjetursson had another free kick from 20 yards that deflected off the wall of defenders and skipped to USD starting keeper Lance Friesz for a save. In the 39th minute Pjetursson had yet another free kick that he blasted from 25 yards from the left wing that he sailed over the wall and Friesz again was called on to make a save.
USD's Ryan Guy had an uncontested shot from 18 yards on the left wing in the 28th minute that sailed high, and Scott Martin hit the left post in the 38th minute on a shot off a USD corner.
In the 86th minute Gonzaga's Robert Anderson was camped to the right of net and his close-in header was grabbed shoulder high by USD keeper Ian Coffman, who replaced Friesz just a minute earlier. USD's Dustin Guerrero hit the crossbar in the final minute of play.
Both teams substituted freely in the second half, and Gonzaga also replaced Sosnovec with Dade Smith in goal for the final 14 minutes.
The Bulldogs were thin at midfield and defense as starters John Palladino and Daniel Scott were both forced to watch from the sideline. Palladino was serving the second of a two-match suspension for a second red card received last weekend and Scott was forced to sit out as a result of picking up his fifth yellow card of the season in Friday's upset win over No. 22 Loyola Marymount University.
The Bulldogs finish the season on the road with matches against Santa Clara University next Friday, at Saint Mary's College Nov. 12 and at the University of San Francisco on Nov. 14.
