REDDING, Calif. - The men's soccer team dropped its home opener tonight as they fell against Southern Oregon 4-1.
The Raiders drew first blood in the 12th minute on a goal by JP Warnell as he cleaned up a loose pass in the box by Esmatullah Yawari. However, it was not long before Warnell found the back of the net for the second time in the first half as he intercepted a Red Hawks crossing pass to give the Raiders the 2-0 advantage.
Coming out of the half, the Red Hawks got on the board in the 60th minute on a goal by
David Clavijo as he finished a crossing pass from
Jevic Mwanza.
The Red Hawks nearly tied the game as
Gonzalo Luna fired a shot to the upper zone of the net, but a great lunging save by the Raiders' goalkeeper Daniel Espinosa preserved the SOU lead.
The Raiders added two insurance goals as Jonathan Gaspar found the back of the net in the 82nd minute, and Warnell completed the hat-trick for his third goal of the game.
During the contest, a total of five yellow cards were given, with Simpson acquiring two cards.
Starting goal keeper
Jesus Montoya posted two saves but suffered his second loss of the season between the posts, while
Julian Mejia made his Red Hawks debut in the second half and notched three saves.
Simpson looks to bounce back next Saturday as they take on Jessup University at 11 am at the California Soccer Park.
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