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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara men's soccer team saw its 11-game unbeaten run ended in overtime against UC Irvine on Saturday night at Harder Stadium, with the Anteaters upending the Gauchos (10-3-2, 3-1-0 Big West) 2-1.
A golden goal from Oscar Cervantes just over four minutes into the first overtime period gave the visitors what they needed to emerge from Santa Barbara victorious.
"We knew it was going to be a tough game tonight. I definitely thought we played better in the second half. We made some adjustments, we did some things better, we got the game-tying goal. Of course, I'm extremely disappointed with what happened in overtime," said UCSB head coach Tim Vom Steeg.
UC Irvine's Victor Falck capitalized on a rebound from Eder Oliva's shot that was kept from going in by junior centerback William Gillingham on the goal line to put Irvine ahead 1-0 in the 42nd minute.
UCSB's junior left winger Ameyawu Muntari was fouled in Irvine's box in the 67th minute, drawing a penalty. After a slow run-up, senior attacking midfielder Thibault Candia converted on the ensuing penalty kick by firing his shot into the bottom left corner of the net for his sixth goal of the season, the Frenchman's second via penalty kick.
However, the night was made golden for the Anteaters when Oscar Cervantes carried the ball through the right side of midfield and unleashed a 20-yard effort that hit the left post and went in.
UC Irvine leapt ahead of the Gauchos in the Big West Conference standings, improving to 3-0-1 in conference play with ten points to show for their success so far.
Both UCSB and UC Davis are tied for the second spot on nine points apiece after respective 3-1-0 starts.
The Gauchos had their longest win streak since 2014 snapped in a match that was marred with 35 fouls, with a season-high 26 called on the home side.
Seven yellow cards were issued by referee Jeff Arthurholtz, including cautions issued to junior centerback Hunter Ashworth, freshman attacking midfielder Finn Ballard McBride, senior defensive midfielder Sahid Conteh, and Muntari.
Conteh will be suspended for Santa Barbara's next match at UC Davis on Wednesday after having picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.
Prior to the match, a ceremony took place honoring the team's 11 seniors on the roster.
The Gauchos are on the road for the final three games of the season, beginning with UC Davis on Wednesday. The action begins at 3:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on BigWest.TV and on UCSB radio, and both links can be found on the men's soccer schedule page.
Follow UCSB men's soccer all season long on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
