Cougars Fall Short 2-1 vs No. 8 Taft

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

College the Canyons did its best to fight back from an early disadvantage but was ultimately unable to come all the back, falling 2-1 to visiting No. 8 ranked Taft College.

The result was the second loss in as many outings for Canyons (1-3), the defending Western State Conference (WSC), South Division champions.

Taft (2-2) began the week tied for the No. 8 spot in the California Community College Sports Information Association (CCCSIA) statewide poll.

A free kick that soared just over the hand of Cougars goalkeeper Kian Bensend put Taft on the board 1-0 in the 15th minute.

Roughly four minutes later Taft forward Osvaldo Ibarra Sanchez got his own rebound on a shot deep in the box, and was able to knock his second attempt through to extend the lead at 2-0.

COC freshman Enrique Gutierrez netted an unassisted goal in the 40th minute to give Canyons new life heading into halftime. However, the two teams played to a scoreless second half for a 2-1 final score.

Bensend (1-3) recorded three saves but took the loss after surrendering both first half goals. Head coach Phil Marcellin opted to start freshman Jacob Tomaszewski in net for the second half. Tomaszewski recorded three saves in the period.

Canyons earned four corners compared to two for Taft. The Cougars had six shots in the game, including three on goal.

The Cougars will host another highly regarded opponent when No. 5 Fresno City College (3-0-2) comes to town for a 3 p.m. match on Tuesday, Sept. 17. 

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.