Box Score SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The latest edition of the notorious Blue-Green rivalry took place on Saturday night, bringing in the largest crowd Harder Stadium has seen this year. Trailing Cal Poly 1-0 with just minutes left on the clock, Finn Ballard McBride leveled the match with an 86th minute equalizer to end things at 1-1 and save the UC Santa Barbara men's soccer team from its first loss of conference play.
Despite the fact that the longest shutout streak in program history came to an end, UCSB (9-2-5, 4-0-3) remains in first place as the only undefeated Big West team. The Mustangs, who became the only team to score a goal against the Gauchos during conference, move to 1-11-4 overall, 1-3-4 Big West.
Ballard McBride also moved up to No. 6 all-time in Gaucho goals, tying with Chris Pontius (2005-08) with the 29th of his career.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gauchos were on the attack from the get-go, determined to get on the board in the first half. However, their offensive cohesion was matched by Cal Poly's sharp defense, which pushed up aggressively to pressure UCSB's back line. In multiple instances of heavy traffic, UCSB attempted through balls, but couldn't find the final ball needed, and opportunities to score were scarce.
Returning to the lineup following a three-game absence, junior midfielder Nemo Phillip was just shy of lighting up the scoreboard in the 27th minute, as he rocketed the ball into the crossbar. As the Gauchos pushed bodies forward in the last minute of the half, a shot by senior Henry Davies forced a great save to keep things scoreless.
UCSB tried different lineup combinations in the second half, getting a good spark from freshman midfielder Eddie Villeda who dazzled the crowd of nearly 8,000 people with an array of moves to beat defenders and a shot from way outside that ended up in a save and a corner. That was one of 13 second half shot attempts for the Gauchos, compared to two for the Mustangs.
UCSB 0, Cal Poly 1 – Noah Boettiger 78'
As they continued pushing numbers forward, the Gauchos made one crucial mistake in the midfield that led to a breakaway for the Mustangs. Noah Boettiger was set up with a shot in the box that forced a save from a Gaucho defender, but the rebound fell right back to him and he put it past goalkeeper Leroy Zeller for the first time in over 657 minutes of gametime.
UCSB 1, Cal Poly 1 – Ballard Mcbride, Finn 86' (T. Baartman)
Determined to get back level, the Gauchos came back with a sense of urgency they hadn't played with over the first 78 minutes. In the 86th, they would finally get their goal, which had felt inevitable for most of the second half. A pass from the left side by Filip Basili made it to Thaabit Baartman in the face of the defense. Baartman made the key short pass to Ballard McBride, who seized the opportunity to bring his goal total to 11 goals for the year, squeezing his shot past the Mustang defense and into the center of the goal.
NOTABLE
- The match's attendance settled at 7,535, good for the nation's third-largest crowd in collegiate soccer in 2022.
- UCSB set a season-high during conference play with 19 shot attempts. Cal Poly finished with nine after outshooting the Gauchos 7-6 in the first half.
- Despite earning their first road point at UC Santa Barbara since 2017, the Mustangs were eliminated from Big West Tournament contention.
- With two games remaining before the end of the regular season, the Gauchos have a chance to go into the Big West Tournament with an undefeated conference record for the first time since 2013.
- Heading into the final week of play, the Gauchos remain in first place with 15 points. UC Riverside (14) is in second and CSUN (13) is third. However, UCSB has two games left to increase its lead with its rescheduled game against UC Irvine to be played this coming Wednesday, Oct. 26.
