(FULLERTON, Calif.) The Warriors’ Davies Kabogoza scored the first goal of his collegiate career to give Westmont Men’s Soccer (8-5-2, 5-3-1 GSAC) a 1-0 Golden State Athletic Conference victory over Hope International on Tuesday afternoon. With the win, the Warriors conclude a three-game road trip with two wins and a tie.
Kabogoza, who hails from Uganda, entered the game in the 38th minute. Seven minutes later , he scored the game’s lone goal just seconds before the end of the first half.
“We were attacking down the left-hand side of the field and turned over the ball,” reported Westmont head coach Dave Wolf. “Austin Lack re-won it back on the edge of the box, digging the ball out of a tackle. He rounded a defender close to the end line and slotted the ball across the top of the six. Davies was there to scramble it home. We didn’t know it at the time, but it turned out to be the key moment of the match.
“Davies has not had the opportunity to play a lot,” continued the coach, “but he has kept at it. His score epitomized what the day was for us, which was contributions from a lot of different people. We had to have those contributions because of how physically tired we were. We felt like we’ve been on that bus for a month. From last Wednesday when we left to the end of today, we’ve been on that bus pretty solid for the last seven days. To take seven points out of a possible nine in those three road games was huge.
“I’m not sure how the guys were able to find the physical energy to do it for as much as we have been on the road,” stressed Wolf. “That was really impressive to me. We got lots of good contributions off the bench today and from our younger players. Dash Wulterin, Tim Heiduk, Asher Booth, Sam Martin and Jeremiah Anderson all played a role.”
With the win, Westmont has moved into a tie with The Master’s for third place in the GSAC standings with just one game remaining in the regular season. Another win on Senior Day this Saturday against San Diego Christian would guarantee Westmont a home game in the first round of next week’s GSAC Tournament.
“Those thin margins – whether you do travel or don’t travel – they matter come playoff time,” said Wolf. “According to the second MRPI (Modified Ratings Point Index), we have played the second toughest schedule in the entire country. A lot of our challenging games have been on the road. So, it would be really nice to play at home and save those five or six hours of travel. The job is not done yet, but for what this team has been through this season, that would be a terrific accomplishment.”
Saturday’s game is scheduled to kick off at noon.
