MORAGA, Calif. — The Gaels came into their matchup with the Mustangs fresh off a 1-0 victory over the Cal Bears and earning the offensive and defensive players of the week awards in the WCC, but had a 1-0 lead slip away in the final 35 minutes Monday evening at Saint Mary's Stadium.
 
There were early opportunities for the Gaels in the first 11 minutes of play, as Gaels forwards Jack Vestberg, Boyd Curry, and Riley Lynch took advantage of the Mustangs openings on defense to streak up the right side multiple times, especially Lynch, who had two close-range shots in the early stages.
 
But Saint Mary's couldn't find the back of the net in those early shots and the Mustangs tightened up defensively after that near miss by Lynch. Later in the half the Gaels generated more great opportunities from Louis Sterobo and Andrew Rotter from the right of the goal, with Sterobo forcing a diving save from the Mustang keeper and Rotter's shot sailing just high and wide.
 
The Gaels would net the games first goal in the 60^th minute when David Brog played a ball ahead to Vestberg leading him into open space where Vestberg chipped a left-footed shot past the Cal Poly keeper. The Mustang defenders pleaded for an offside call but Vestberg was perfectly aligned to receive the pass from Brog.  
 
The lead would be short lived though, as the Mustangs set up a corner kick in the 65^th minute and Neil Boyal fed a cross into the box to Conor Leber for Cal Poly's first goal on a header.
 
In the 76^th minute Cal Poly again had a corner kick from Boyal, this time headed by Jacob Glass, but Saint Mary's Tyler Hardin deflected it out of play. The Mustangs would not be denied though on the following corner kick, as Boyal again put one into the box that Glass headed to the right of Gaels keeper Nicholas Lapinid for a 2-1 Mustangs lead that they would hang on to for the win.  
 
The Gaels dropped to 1-1 on the young season while the Mustangs improved to 1-1. Cal Poly leads the all-time series between the two programs, three games to one, with Saint Mary's win coming in the previous matchup between in 2018.
 
UP NEXT
Saint Mary's Men's Soccer will host the UNLV Running Rebels at Saint Mary's Stadium at 4:00 on Friday, September 3.
 
#GaelsRise — Single game tickets are on sale through the month of September! To select your game and your tickets, click HERE!