Nov. 7, 2004
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The 15th-ranked Santa Clara men's soccer team fell to Portland, 2-1 in a West Coast Conference match-up at Buck Shaw Stadium on Sunday afternoon. With the loss, the Broncos fall to 13-5-0 on the season and 6-4-0 in conference action.
"We played a very good second half today," said head coach Cameron Rast. "We put good pressure on our opponent and scored a good, opportunistic goal. However, this is a game of two halves. We did not play well enough in the first half to get the best result today."
Portland scored both of its goals in the first half to take a 2-0 advantage into halftime. Matthew Dallman scored in the 21st minute off a cross from Alejandro Salazar to give the Pilots the early lead. In the 40th minute, Salazar would set up another Pilot score as he fed Christopher Sanders 10 yards in front of the net to record the second Portland goal of the contest.
Santa Clara would come out in the second half with new found offensive energy. The Broncos would post 12 shots in the period, as they out-shot the Pilots 18 to eight in the match. Peter Lowry provided much of the offensive spark as his five shots led the way for SCU.
Lowry would also play a major role in the Broncos' goal as his free kick set up the score. The freshman from Fair Oaks took the kick from just outside the left edge of the penalty box. The ball would find the head of Jason Cunliffe and get past Portland goalkeeper Luis Robles for the Santa Clara score.
In the 69th minute, Lowry would once again be in the middle of the action as the Broncos saw one of their best scoring opportunities of the period. Lowry had streaked past the Pilot back line to get one-on-one with Robles before his shot collided with the near post.
A season-high 22 players saw action in the contest for the Broncos, including freshman goalkeeper Christopher Moreo. The Las Vegas, Nevada native tallied a season-high 45 minutes in the net and recorded two saves in the half.
The Broncos will wrap up their regular season home schedule next weekend with a pair of conference matches. Loyola Marymount will come to Buck Shaw Stadium on Friday night for a 7:00 p.m. contest. On Sunday, SCU will honor its senior class prior to a 3:00 p.m. match with San Diego.
