The Cal Poly men’s soccer team used an 86th-minute goal to salvage a point in a 1-1 draw against UC Davis on Tuesday night. Senior forward Mackenzie Pridham notched his Big West-leading 12th goal of the season in the win.
Jacob Lauing
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Senior forward Mackenzie Pridham notched his 12th goal of the season Tuesday night, but Cal Poly couldn’t find the net a second time, drawing 1-1 in double-overtime with UC Davis.
Pridham surpassed last season’s 11-goal mark, marking a career-high for the senior. He now ranks second in school history with 25 career goals, behind David Zamora and Clay Harty.
“My number one goal this year was to beat the record I had last year,” Pridham said. “I was able to sneak one in tonight. Possibly could have gotten another one here or there, but sometimes it doesn’t go your way.”
UC Davis, which entered the match tied with Cal Poly for second place in the Big West Conference North Division standings, controlled the first 45 minutes of regulation. The Aggies gave Cal Poly a scare at the 16-minute marker, as they headed one past keeper Wade Hamilton, but the goal was quickly ruled offside.
The Aggies led the action again soon after. Ian Palmer took advantage of a scramble around the net and snuck one by Hamilton in the 34th minute, putting UC Davis up 1-0 going into halftime.
With only one shot on goal in the first half, Cal Poly made a tactical adjustment at halftime, dropping a midfielder to the backfield and defending UC Davis man-to-man.
As a result, the Mustangs came out looking like a different team in the second half. UC Davis only mustered five shots the rest of the night, compared to Cal Poly’s 15.
“You could see the tide change,” head coach Paul Holocher said. “We started to create many opportunities. We could have gone there and not got the goal. In the (86th-minute) they stuck with it and they created enough chances to get that. They showed a lot of character tonight.”
Justin Dhillon assisted Pridham’s late goal, which sent things into overtime. Dhillon now ranks 22nd in the nation in assists.
“We were able to fight back,” Pridham said. “Our pregame talk was about love and the love we have for each other. Going down a goal against a team that is big, tough, fast and strong, it’s hard to come back, but we found a way and we were able to get the tie.”
Cal Poly now sits at 2-3-1 in conference, and remains at a stalemate with UC Davis for second place.
No. 21 UC Santa Barbara remains undefeated atop the conference with a perfect 6-0 record. The Gauchos, who rank No. 2 in the NCAA RPI poll, will enter Alex G. Spanos Stadium this Friday for the first of two Blue-Green Rivalry matches this season.
“Santa Barbara is a very big team, a very physical team and they compete hard,” Holocher said. “There’s also some very good individual players. We’ve got to go back and watch some film, dissect them as much as we can.”
For Pridham, a fifth year senior, Friday marks his last taste of the Blue-Green Rivalry in Spanos Stadium.
“It’s going to be pretty exciting,” Pridham said. “You can’t get too high .You’ve got to still stay level and stay focused and just try and do the little things because that’s what’s going to matter in the game.”
Cal Poly won both meetings against its rival last season, but UC Santa Barbara is riding a seven-game win streak as the Gauchos beat Sacramento State earlier Tuesday evening.
“They’re just a handful,” Holocher said. “Friday night is going to be organized chaos against Santa Barbara.”