COD Men's Soccer Grabs First Clean Sheet of Season, 4-0

COD (3-1-1) picked up its third win in the last four games, breaking a scoreless deadlock at the half before pulling away in the second half. The Roadrunners began scoring in the 63rd minute and didn't stop, blanking the winless San Diego Mesa Olympians of Clairemont Mesa (0-3), 4-0.

The Roadrunners first met San Diego Mesa in 1982 and hold a 14-19-5 all-time record against them. COD is 8-9-3 against the Olympians in Palm Desert and carries a six-match unbeaten streak in the series dating back to 2021.

Sophomore goalkeeper Henzel Solares (Indio H.S.) earned his first clean sheet of the season, turning aside six shots on goal with save after spectacular save.

Both teams spent the first half feeling each other out, and the Olympians spent the final 15 minutes of the half leaning heavily on COD's defense. The Roadrunners held firm through the halftime whistle. The second half opened much the same way, but around the 60th minute COD made a series of substitutions that shifted the game's rhythm and gave the home side a clear edge in the heat and humidity of a Palm Desert September.

In the 63rd minute, freshman forward Jairo Alcaraz (Thermal/Desert Mirage) found sophomore forward Jonathan Price (La Quinta H.S.), who finally broke through the Olympians' defense with a shot past the diving keeper, putting the Roadrunners up 1-0.

In the 75th minute, freshman defender Marco Sanchez (Rancho Mirage H.S.) set up Price again for his third goal of the season — the first multi-goal game of Price's career — extending the lead to 2-0.

In the 81st minute, sophomore midfielder Nefthali Lopez (Cathedral City H.S.) lofted a pass to freshman forward Iker Sabillon Aguirre (Rancho Mirage H.S.), who buried his first goal of the season to make it 3-0.

Just 72 seconds later, the Roadrunners struck again: Lopez recorded his third assist of the season — his first multi-assist game — finding freshman forward Nathaniel Fimbres (La Quinta H.S.) for his first goal of the year, capping a commanding 4-0 win.

The Roadrunners continue non-conference play Friday, September 11 at 4:30 p.m., traveling to face the Allan Hancock Bulldogs. COD first played Hancock in 1993 and owns a 2-1 all-time record against them, though the team is 0-1 against the Bulldogs in Santa Maria. The two sides last met on August 30, 2008, when COD won 3-2 in the Bulldog Classic Tournament in Santa Maria.

COD's next home match is Tuesday, September 15 at 5:30 p.m. against the College of the Canyons Cougars of Santa Clarita, also in non-conference play. The Roadrunners first faced Canyons in 2019 and hold a 1-1-1 all-time record against them. Tuesday's game will mark the first time in program history that COD has hosted Canyons in men's soccer. The Roadrunners' last win over Canyons came October 4, 2024, a 2-0 victory in Santa Clarita.

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For additional information, please contact the COD Sports Information Office at 760.423.6641.

Information & Story provided by COD Sports Information. Photo by Darbie Catalfamo Photography.