Cats claw Condors in second round

The Saddleback men's soccer team advanced to the third round of the 3C2A Southern California Regional Tournament with a 3-2 win at Oxnard College on Saturday in Oxnard.  Jason Starcks scored the go-ahead goal in the final minutes for the win.

Saddleback was coming off a big win in the opening round on Wednesday and hoping the momentum would carry into the second round.  The Bobcats came out hot, serving notice that they weren't an underdog. 

Saddleback scored in the 19^th minute when Andrew Jun was awarded a penalty kick and beat the Oxnard keeper for a 1-0 lead.  It was Jun's team-leading 13^th goal of the season and third goal of the playoffs.

Oxnard tied the game right before the half and opened the second half with another goal in the first five minutes to take a 2-1 lead.  The Bobcats didn't let the scoreboard get to them, answering the call in the 60^th minute when Jun connected for a second time off a pass from Andy Garcia to tie the game.

The teams played even until the final minutes when Saddleback made its move.  Jun struck a ball that was deflected by the Oxnard keeper and Jason Starcks put the rebound in the net for a 3-2 lead with under three minutes remaining on the clock.  It was the third goal of the season for Starcks and propelled the Bobcats over the finish line.

Dominic DiFrenna started in goal and played until the 59^th minute before Tyler Bourbonnais took over in goal.  The duo combined for seven saves in the contest.

Saddleback is now 11-6-5 following the win.  The Bobcats will host MiraCosta College in the regional semifinals on Wednesday at 2:00 PM.