Nov. 2, 2008
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - In the 99th minute of Sunday afternoon's West Coast Conference match against the Portland Pilots, freshman Eric Masch dished out the game-winning goal to lift Santa Clara to a 3-2 victory.
"I really happy for the players," said head coach Cameron Rast. "There were a lot of challenges in this game, but they battled and created great opportunities for themselves. I'm really proud of Eric [Masch] and Connor [Mitchell]. Both players, along with Austin [Tenn-McClellan], had a great game. What's impressive about this group is that even though there isn't much left to fight for this season, they keep on fighting and are willing to battle for a win."
With the win, the Broncos improved to 4-8-5 on the season and 2-4-3 in WCC play, while the Pilots dropped to 6-9-2 overall and 3-6-0 in league action.
The Bronco had a 16-9 shooting advantage and a 4-1 corner kick edge. In goal, freshman Naushad Godrej earned his first collegiate win, while Masch scored his first two collegiate goals.
After a quiet first half, Frankie Lopez opened the scoring for Portland with his 10th goal of the season. At 52:44, Jarad vanSchaik found Lopez at the left edge of the goal box. Lopez then sent a swift ball to the lower right corner to give the Pilots a 1-0 lead.
Santa Clara responded 13 minutes later with its first goal of the match. Senior Aaron Clubb sent the ball from just about center midfield to just outside the 18. Freshman Alex Fitschen brought the ball down to fellow freshman Connor Mitchell, who then found the lower left corner of the goal to make it a 1-1 game. It was Mitchell's third goal of the season.
Under four minutes later, Masch gave SCU a one goal advantage. Chris Sauter dribbled up the middle of the field and crossed the ball to Masch. At 77:43, the San Jose native tapped the ball into the lower left corner and the Broncos led 2-1.
However, at the start of the 90th minute, Portland's Collen Warner evened the score once again. His unassisted goal was a chip shot from 16 yards out to the upper right corner. The match was knotted at two goals a piece heading into overtime.
The Broncos had several opportunities in overtime to win the match, but it was Masch struck gold again at 98:32. Fitschen had first received the ball and attempted a shot, but it bounced off a Pilot defender to the foot of Masch, who pounded the ball into the upper left corner for the win.
The Broncos return to action for their final home game of the 2008 season on Friday, Nov. 8 against the Gaels of Saint Mary's. Kick off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Buck Shaw Stadium. Santa Clara will honor its graduating seniors in a pregame ceremony prior to starting lineups.
