Cougars Tie Themselves Up in California Contest
Brittany Eads
(310) 804-7245
britteads@gmail.com
Steven Fellows
Provo, Utah (May 29, 2009) — The BYU men’s soccer team scored three goals Friday; unfortunately, only two of those were in the opponents’ net.
The Cougars traveled to Irvine, Calif. to battle the Orange County Blue Star and appeared headed for a win before a late clearance kick rocketed back toward the goal and found its way past the BYU goalkeeper.
“It was so disappointing, because—after getting off to a rough start and playing a bit flat—we otherwise finished the game very strong,” BYU head coach Chris Watkins lamented.
The visitors from Provo, Utah put the first point on the board as forward Steve Fellows curved a ball into the upper right corner of the net following an assisted pass from midfielder Brent Jensen in the 18th minute.
Orange County responded with its own goal in the 38th minute, leaving the game tied 1-1 at halftime. Shaking off their initial timidness, the Cougars pushed the ball forward until Jensen was able to make a high-flying header into the goal off of a corner kick by midfielder BJ Pugmire in the 68th minute.
Less than two minutes later, however, the Cougars inadvertently tied the game and were unable to connect again, walking off the field with its second disappointing tie in little over a week.
“It was hard, but this was definitely our best on-the-road game to date,” an optimistic Watkins continued. “We have got to be tough with these teams from the get-go, because we do very well once we realize that we are able to compete with them.”
The Cougars travel up the 405 freeway into Los Angeles today to face the Hollywood United Hitmen in what is sure to be an exciting game after last week’s intense 1-0 matchup.
