VALLEJO, CA- The Soka University Lions defeated the Cal Maritime Keelhaulers 3-0 Sunday afternoon at Bodnar Field to earn their third conference win, bringing their overall record to 4-3-1 and 3-1-0 in Cal Pac Conference play.

The Lions scored their first goal 15 minutes into the match, which stemmed from a set piece from 25 yards out. With a dangerous bending, service played into the box by Bryan Palpallatoc, Cal Maritime's defense was unable to get the ball cleared, and Soka's Noah Alexander found himself on the ball with his back to net. Alexander took his first touch inside, and with a no-look, half-chance, right-footed strike, he pulled his shot cross-keeper and finished high and into the left corner of the goal to give the Lions the early 1-0 lead.

The two sides battled throughout the rest of the first half, and with 90 seconds remaining on the clock, Soka notched a second goal to end out the period.

Holding their 2-0 lead, the Lions denied the Keelhaulers attack for the remainder of the game, and with four minutes left on the clock, Soka's Nicholas Bello added an insurance goal to bring the final score to 3-0. This was Bello's second goal of the season, giving him four points so far on the year.

"A six-point weekend away from home is great," said Head Coach Shawn Beyer. "We are happy with the result, but the performance needs more consistency. Our back line was great with another shutout, and the center backs were very good at managing the consistent long balls from Maritime. Offensively, we were off the standard and will need sharpness to improve as we move forward in the season."

Up next, Soka returns home to host the University of Antelope Valley Pioneers on Sunday, September 24, 2023. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.
 


NOTES: The Lions were outshot 15-9 but put seven shots on frame compared to Maritime's six… Alexander's goal was his second of the season, giving him five points so far and putting him third on the team in total points… Soka's Eric Aparicio made six saves in the game… yellow cards were shown to Soka's Adalid Oregon and Cal Maritime's Gregg Aguilar, Noah Anderson, Matias Vidal-MacKay, Mateo Sanchez, and Nikhil Hunter.