Gamez header lifts No. 6 El Camino past No. 1. Mt. San Antonio in South Coast showdown

3C2A Men's Soccer: Standings l Scoreboard

TORRANCE - Sophomore Marvin Gamez's late goal proved to be the difference as El Camino College defeated Mount San Antonio 1-0 in a South Coast Conference matchup on Friday afternoon at the ECC Soccer Field.

Gamez blasted a header into the net off a free kick from Charlie Cazares in the 68th minute to put the Warriors up 1-0 and the defense made it hold up the rest of the way. Robert Baker made six saves on the day including three in the final minutes of action to keep the Warriors ahead at the final whistle.

The teams were evenly matched throughout as the Mounties outshot the Warriors 18-14 thanks to an 11-6 edge in the second half.

But the teams were nearly level in shots on target with the Mounties holding a 6-5 advantage.

Gamez himself fired off six shots on the day but his only one on target was the difference maker. Cazares curled a free kick into the middle of the box where Gamez charged and then outjumped the Mounties defender to hit a perfect header and tuck it inside the near post with a frozen Mounties goalkeeper helpless to stop the shot.

The Warriors have now won five straight matches after opening conference play with a loss at Compton. They will prepare for another big test as Cerritos comes to the ECC Soccer Field on Tuesday, Oct. 29. The Falcons currently sit in second place in the SCC-South Division after playing East Los Angeles to a 0-0 draw on Friday. They are 4-0-2 with 14 points while the Warriors improved to 5-1-0 and 15 points to take over the top spot.

(Rafael Guerrero, El Camino College Athletics)