Los Angeles Blues News Release -- www.labluesprosoccer.com
Friday, March 16, 2012
FULLERTON, Calif. – The Los Angeles Blues played Cal State Fullerton to a 2-2 draw in a preseason tuneup on Friday afternoon. Despite Head Coach Charlie Naimo’s men being visibly tired in their third scrimmage in under a week, they defied the bumpy pitch and outplayed their feisty opponents for the better part of 90 minutes, only to miss several quality chances and concede on both of CSUF’s dangerous looks in the match.
The Blues were first on the attack in the sixth minute, Israel Sesay slightly mis-hitting a cross from the left that seemed to turn into a direct threat on goal before whizzing just wide. After a quieter period, Sesay then had his side drawing first blood in the 20th minute of play.
Following a clumsy tackle against attacker Park Cheunyong on the right side of the penalty area, it took a well-placed spot kick from the 21-year-old to make it 1-0, as opposing netminder Brian Escalante got a hand on the ball but couldn’t keep it from finding the net via the inside of the post.
With the half-hour mark approaching, Blues forward Matt Fondy nearly had his third goal in as many games, his header from a well-hit Bryan Burke cross being blocked on the goal line by Escalante. Park came even closer in the 30th minute, as he was released by a precise Irving Garcia ball over the top of the defense. One-on-one with the CSUF goalkeeper, the Korean was unlucky to see his chipped attempt bounce off the upright.
The USL PRO side would be punished for the missed chances moments later, Jesse Escalante finding himself with a golden chance following an Ian Ramos through-ball and beating goalkeeper Amir Abedzadeh with a determined right-footed finish from inside the area.
Park could have re-established the Blues' advantage in the 37th minute, as he did well to muscle off a defender on a ball out of midfield to put himself in another one-on-one situation with Escalante, who did a fantastic job to rush off his line and react quickly to deflect the finish wide of goal.
The CSUF netminder would add to his standout performance in the closing stages of the first half, his stunning reflex on the goal line keeping out Burke’s close-range header following a cross in from the right by Garcia. However, Burke would not be denied in stoppage time, as he used all of his experience as a former attacking player to control a deflected Park shot at the top of the area and calmly slot it inside the near post to make it 2-1.
The first opportunity of the second half came in the 55th minute when Escalante left his box to intercept a pass over the top of the defense by trialist Ricardo Balderas. While the head of Scottish striker Allan Russell got to the ball first, the goalkeeper did enough to throw the 31-year-old off and clear the danger.
Blues substitute shot-stopper and potential signing Dominik Jakubek had limited opportunity to make an impact in the match. However, he did make a diving stop to deny a shot from outside the area around the hour-mark. Jakubek would be helpless on the Titans' 74th-minute equalizer, a near-replica of the side’s first goal, Richie Gonzalez this time setting up Jon Birt for the finish from inside the box.
Unwilling to settle for the surprise scoreline, the Blues attacked furiously in the closing stages of the match and were very nearly rewarded.
In the 80th minute, Russell sprinted down the left and sent an intelligent pass into area that found the feet of Sesay, who had two chances to finish but was denied both times by a desperately scrambling Escalante. The goalkeeper’s second block saw the ball fall to Garcia, who had time to settle it and pick a corner. To the disbelief of both benches, Escalante recovered yet again and managed to throw himself into the 24-year-old’s shot, single-handedly preserving the draw for his team.
The game’s final chance came in stoppage time, Matt Hall beating his man on the right and releasing Sesay in the box, only for the CSUF goalkeeper to make himself big one last time and deny the attempted close-range finish from a tight angle.
The Blues will look to recharge their batteries before their next preseason tuneup, a scrimmage at Loyola Marymount University on Saturday, March 24, at 10 a.m. PT.