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Missed opportunities plagued the ninth-ranked New Mexico men’s soccer team Sunday night in the Lobos’ 3-2 loss to Cal State Northridge.
UNM took 22 shots, 8 on goal, and 12 corner kicks, but defensive breakdowns against the No. 11 Matadors resulted in the Lobos’ first loss of 2013.
Two goals that were called back compounded UNM’s woes. A UNM foul in the first half forced senior midfielder Michael Kafari’s goal to be waved off, while an offside call nullified freshman midfielder Niko Hansen’s score.
In their previous four games, the Lobos (3-1-1) had never trailed an opponent.
“It was a tough one,” Hansen. “We were a good team, a good attacking team all around and we knew we were better than them. … We just gotta finish.”
Northridge sophomore midfielder David Turcios recorded two goals, including the first of the game following a deflected shot by junior forward Sagi Lev-Ari at the 27:35 mark. He scored again in the second half, benefiting from an assist at 70:14 by senior midfielder Carlos Benavides.
Senior forward Brian Behrad also scored an unassisted goal that put Northridge up 2-0 after the first half.
“A little bit unlucky,” UNM senior defender Kyle Venter said. “Their first two goals came off deflections, put them one-v-one in on goal … maybe left ourselves a little open.”
UNM’s first goal came at 64:56 with a penalty kick by senior midfielder Michael Calderon. However, Turcios’ second goal five minutes later regained a two-goal advantage for Northridge.
Hansen eventually scored a goal that stuck in the final two minutes, firing a rebound into the net after a shot by freshman midfielder James Wypych.
Calderon and Hansen both have three goals this season.
“It’s pretty disappointing,” UNM head coach Jeremy Fishbein said. “I thought we played quite well.”
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Northridge took eight shots, five on goal, but did not attempt a corner kick. UNM senior goalkeeper Michael Lisch made three saves, while Madator sophomore goalkeeper Adam Hobbs stopped six UNM shots.
In UNM’s first game of the invitational Friday night, UNM captured a 1-0 win over Santa Clara. Junior forward James Rogers scored the game’s only goal at the 64:52 mark off an assist by Calderon.
UNM finished with a 15-6 shot advantage, while the Lobo defense contained Santa Clara to one shot-on-goal saved by Lisch.
“It wasn’t the prettiest of soccer games, but I think Santa Clara played it how they needed to play it,” Fishbein said after Friday’s game. “The way they pressed with the front five, we didn’t really play through it that well the first half. I thought we started figuring it out in the second half.”
Central Arkansas also competed in the invitational, defeating Northridge 4-1 on Friday and falling to Santa Clara 2-1 on Sunday.
Women fall to 2-6 on season
The Lobo women, meanwhile, suffered two defeats at the Saint Mary’s Classic in Moraga Calif., after losing to Pacific 2-1 on Sunday. UNM lost to Saint Mary’s 1-0 on Friday.
Against Pacific, UNM found the back of the net just before the 16-minute mark and held the lead for nearly 62 minutes. Sophomore forward Madisyn Olguin scored the Lobo goal, receiving the assist from sophomore midfielder Alyssa Coonrod.
Late in the second half, Pacific picked up two goals in 10 minutes to secure the victory.
UNM sophomore goalkeeper Cassie Ulrich made two saves against Saint Mary’s and another eight saves against Pacific.
