EC men’s soccer team drops last game of season, misses out on playoffs
TEC Warriors midfielder, Andy Salguero, blasts in a goal from the penalty box to tie the game up 1-1 in the first half, during the EC Warriors vs Pasadena City College men’s soccer match held at El Camino on Friday, Nov. 9. Photo credit: Darwyn Samayoa
Hard work led to a successful season and a bright future for the El Camino College men’s soccer team as they closed out the season at home against the Pasadena City College Lancers on Friday.
“I think we had a good mindset going into that game,” EC head coach Michael Jacobson said. “We were on that bubble to make the playoffs.”
EC relied on yet another comeback effort to get a result as the game finished tied at 2 goals a piece.
PCC opened up the scoring in the first half after a through ball to forward, David Vasquez-Mena, resulted in the EC goalkeeper being chipped.
“It was a good goal, our captain set me through and I did a quick look and the keep came out,” Vasquez-Mena said.” It was good to score the first goal. Obviously, we’re away and that’s one of the hardest things.”
EC quickly tied it back up after midfielder, Andy Salguero, put one back past the PCC goalkeeper in the 19th minute.
The second half proved to be more physical but a goal by PCC forward, Anthony Jimenez, put the Lancers up, 2-1.
A final shot by EC defender Cole Prince tied the game up in the 90th minute to give EC the dramatic 2-2 result.
“I think the players that were playing tonight have good chemistry,” Jacobson said about his team.
PCC men’s soccer coach, Gerry Mora, could not be reached to discuss his team’s performance despite several attempts made by The Union.
The positive result was not enough as EC needed a win and the help of Compton College to make the playoffs, but, Compton fell to LA Harbor College 5-1.
“I think it was tough to set our future in someone else’s hands,” freshman forward, Kevin Negrete said. “It put us in a tough position and hopefully we take this as a lesson.”
Nothing came easy for the Warriors after an early season five-game undefeated streak portrayed a “Cinderella” team looking to go dancing, followed by a string of inconsistent results.
In 2016 and 2017, the men’s soccer team won a combined seven games and only one conference win.
The remodeled 2018 team, led by first-year head coach Michael Jacobson, accumulated seven wins this season.
“Coming from a program that has had two bad seasons, we had to fight really hard to put the program back,” Jacobson said. “It’s a respectable season to get the program back up and running.”
Players like goal-scoring machine, Kevin Negrete, and experienced sophomore midfielder, Brian Burrell, have sparked life back into the team.
Negrete, an LA Galaxy Academy High School graduate, started the season slowly but found his form and finished the season with a team-leading eight goals in 13 games, including a couple of game-winning shots.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about players, and you need to get talented players and we’re not far away,” Jacobson said. “It’s unfortunate that the season has ended because Kevin [Negrete] finally got his form.”
The Warriors finished the year with a 7-7-6 record and will look to find new talent this off season to replace six sophomore players.
“There are lots of good things these kids have done,” Jacobson said. “[This] off season, these players need to learn to be fit. The staff will also be recruiting.”
![Players from the El Camino College men's soccer team surround and cheer on Melvyn Perez-Cortez, No. 13, after he scored a goal against Orange Coast College in the 48th minute of the match at Murdock Stadium on Tuesday, Nov. 26. “At halftime we had a speech with the coach and he said to ‘come out strong’ and that’s what we did and it benefited us a lot and [the game] went in our favor,” Perez-Cortez said. Rosemary Montalvo/The Union](https://eccunion.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/ND5_9869-475x317.jpg)
