Box Score

Photo Gallery (images by Kier LaCrosse)

Pomona, CA -- Academy of Art University Men's Soccer demonstrated its never-say-die spirit in a hard-fought match against Cal Poly Pomona at Kellogg Field Thursday. In the Urban Knights' first contest of the 2012 season, ART U rallied back after an early Bronco goal, but a pair of scores in the second half put CPP ahead for good 3-1. Freshman forward Jesus "Chava" Sanchez had a particularly memorable debut, scoring the game-tying goal in the 21st minute.

“It was a good day for Urban Knights soccer because we scored our first goal of the year and showed we could battle back,” head coach Daniel Rosaia said. “The boys are really going to bond on this trip.”

The match swung in Pomona's direction early as a goal by Michael Torres in the 8th minute. Torres' initial attempt came from the left then rebounded back to him where he was able to put it in from six yards left of senior goalkeeper Ian Sutherland.

Academy of Art University responded in the 21st minute, however, as a cross from junior forward Aron Ekberg on the left set up a shot by Sanchez from the right side of 18 yard box. The San Francisco native proceeded to put the ball into the net on the left of Bronco goalkeeper Kris Minton.

“It was very unselfish play by Ekberg who took the ball down the line and got a good cross off,” Coach Rosaia said. “It looks like Chava is going to be a good addition to our squad for the next few years. Nice to see a true freshman get a big goal for the team.”

Nearly 20 scoreless minutes passed to start the second half as both teams jockeyed for position. The tie was then broken in the 64th minute when a header pass from Christopher Rosales was met by another sharp header from Abraham Gomez to put CPP up 2-1. Two minutes later, the Broncos struck again as Kris Korich connected on a shot from 10 yards out.

In the 79th minute, sophomore forward Frederik Nagel launched a shot off the crossbar which would have likely initiated a furious Urban Knight comeback. Nagel's attempt was the first of three ART U shots in the final 11 minutes as freshman defenders Kristof Urbanyi and Lennart Fleschhut both had opportunities. However, Cal Poly Pomona would hold on and take the 3-1 win in the end.

“We had a very good first half that was very organized,” Coach Rosaia said. “We got down 1-0 on defensive lapse, but fought back and then tied the game so that really showed character and heart from our boys. We had a good speech and plan at halftime and then their second goal came on a breakdown in a set piece, but our guys were still battling hard.”

Sanchez, who last scored the game-winner in the 2011 AAA Championship match for Lowell High School, finished this match with his first goal as an Urban Knight. Ekberg added his third career assist. Finally, Sutherland offered four saves. ART U is now 0-1 on this young season.

For CPP, goals came from Torres, Gomez, and Korich with a total of four assists on those scores. Minton picked up the win after playing a full 90 minutes with one goal allowed and no saves registered. Cal Poly Pomona moves to 1-0 overall this year.

The Urban Knights will remain in southern California for their next match as they take on UC San Diego this Saturday, Sept. 1 with a 7:00 PM kickoff at Triton Soccer Field.