Men's Soccer Earn 1-1 Tie with Santa Ana on First Regular Season Game on Campus Since March 2020

by Cerwin D Haynes

The student athletes of East Los Angeles College have eagerly awaited the chance to return to the fields, courts and pool to face competition that matters.

As fall sports officially kicked off this week, men's soccer head coach Eddie Flores and his team were the first to host a regular season game tonight, welcoming the Dons of Santa Ana College. The result was a 1-1 tie.

The Dons struck first in the 23rd minute: Marquise Mitchell got a clear shot off in front of the net by catching Huskies goalkeeper Michael Juan out of position. Juan tried to kick the ball away from Mitchell but missed. With a clear net in front of him, Mitchell tapped the ball into the goal. Santa Ana would take a 1-0 lead into the half.

The Huskies responded in the second half: in the 52nd minute, the Huskies had a free kick on the near sideline. Ramiro Hermida placed the kick into the box where Ramon Rodriguez squeezed a set piece header past Dons goalkeeper James Martinez to tie the game.

The teams would exchange scoring chances, with ELAC dodging a near-miss right before the final whistle.

 After the game, Coach Flores offered his thoughts on the game as well as the significance of finally leading his team back on the field for game action.

HUSKY BITS:

• The men have a short trip over to Whittier on Tuesday to take on Rio Hondo. Then they're back at Weingart next Friday to host Santiago Canyon.