SANTA MARIA, Calif. — Aidan DePaco scored the deciding goal and assisted the equalizer as Santa Barbara City College Men’s Soccer (8-3-4, 3-1-1) rallied past Allan Hancock (7-7-2, 1-4), 2-1, on the road Friday.
Hancock struck first when Ernesto Juarez scored less than two minutes in on the first shot for either team. But the Vaqueros did not allow the early goal to deflate their energy.
Jose Ramirez answered in the 11th minute off DePaco’s pass, and DePaco put the Vaqueros ahead six minutes later on an assist from Brandon Montalvo.
From there, Santa Barbara dug in. Goalkeeper Isaac Ortega made four saves from the second goal into the break—about 30 minutes of game time.
The Vaqueros carried that 2-1 lead into halftime and held Hancock scoreless in the second half, despite the hosts’ best efforts. In the last 10 minutes alone, the Vaqueros withstood four corners, three shots, and two yellow cards to see out the gutsy win.
Eric Cruz subbed in at goalie after halftime and stopped all three shots on target that he faced. Across the match, Hancock outshot the Vaqueros 14 to seven—and nine to three in the second half. The Vaqueros also defended seven corners successfully overall.
The win moved Santa Barbara into a tie for first place with LA Mission (3-1-1) after one round of conference play. The Vaqueros return home Tuesday to host Oxnard College at 7 p.m.