After making one of the best comebacks in UC Santa Barbara men’s soccer history, the Gauchos saw their season come to an end in a penalty-kick shootout at Stanford on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
UCSB stormed back from a 2-0 deficit at three-time national champion Stanford, scoring the tying goal with 13 seconds remaining in regulation time. The teams remained deadlocked at 2-2 after 20 minutes of overtime, sending the match into the shootout.
Stanford got two saves from goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly and prevailed, 6-5. The 16th-seeded Cardinal of the ACC (9-5-5) advance to a Sweet 16 matchup at No. 1 Ohio State on Sunday.
For UCSB (12-5-5), the loss on penalties doesn’t diminish the rousing performance it gave after conceding two goals on set pieces, with the second one coming in the final four seconds of the first half.
“We came in (at halftime) and we talked about throwing everything on the field,” UCSB coach Tim Vom Steeg said of his team’s performance. “We didn’t think we were playing bad in the game, we just gave up the two goals …. But with that, we knew that this was a team that was playing for their lives and we fought and we battled, and we started moving the ball around finally and creating a lot of opportunities.”
The Gauchos came out of halftime as the aggressors and put Stanford its heels. They broke through in the 50th minute on a goal by center back Haruki Utsumi. He received a crossing ball from Filip Basilli at the top of the box, took a shot that was blocked back to him and fired another shot that got past Schnebly.
UCSB continued to put heavy pressure on the Stanford defense; the Gauchos outshot the Cardinal 14-1 in the second half.,, Stanford had a 10-2 shot advantage in the first half.
“Look, I’m very proud of them,” said Vom Steeg of his players. “I’m disappointed for the players that we lost, but at the end of the day it was PKs to move on, so I don’t even feel like we lost the game. That was a great effort by the guys in the second half.”
In the 72nd minute, a couple of Gaucho shots struck the lower arms of Stanford defenders in the penalty area, but no call was made by the referee. UCSB players and coaches were incensed, and the referee issued three yellow cards.
After the second incident (on a shot by Basilli), the head referee checked with the Video Assistant Referee and called a hand-ball violation, giving UCSB a penalty kick.
Alexis Ledoux attempted the PK and was denied by Schnebly, who dived to his left to make the save.
Undaunted, the Gauchos stayed on the offensive. With time running out, they created a nice play off a Ledoux throw-in on the left side. Basilli received the ball on the wing and crossed it to Zac Siebenlist at the near post. Siebienlist flicked the ball and it landed inside the far post for the dramatic match-tying goal.
UCSB created a good chance for center back Calle Mollerberg after a corner kick in the first overtime. Mollerberg had a shot at the top of the box but it was broken up by Stanford defender Noah Adnan, the author of both Cardinal goals.
In the second overtime, Stanford midfielder Kwabena Kwakwa broke in on goal but was denied by Mitzner.
Manu Duah and Siebenist set up Kaden Standish for a chance at a game-winning goal in the 109th minute. His shot, however, went wide.
In the shootout, Schnebly made two saves and Mitzner stopped one Stanford shot. Duncan Jarvis scored the deciding PK with a low shot to Mitzner’s left.
Stanford capitalized on a pair of corner kicks to score its goals in the first half.
Will Reilly sent his set piece into a pack of players at the near post and the ball was flicked to the back post where Adnan tapped it in for a 1-0 lead in the 33rd minute.
The Cardinal made it 2-0 with four seconds left before the halftime horn. Dylan Hooper sent his corner kick to the near post and Mitzner tried to swat it away. The goalkeeper didn’t get enough on the ball and Adnan was the man on the spot again for the finish.
UCSB’s offense was stymied in the first half by a high-pressing Stanford defense. The Gauchos’ best chance came in the 43rd minute when Siebenlist, Ramses Martinez and Mikkel Goeling combined on an attack. Goeling got free on the left side of the box but his shot soared over the bar.
Vom Steeg praised his players for pulling together to create a solid season that included a 15th trip to the NCAA Tournament and two great tournament games against UCLA and Stanford.
“I enjoyed coaching them, we played a lot of really good soccer, we did a lot of really great things and I think we were recognized for doing that all season,” Vom Steeg said of the 2024 Gauchos. “It’s a credit to obviously some of our seniors, but I think our recruiting class that brought in some really good players combined with the group that was returning made it to where it was a good mixture, we got the balance right.
“We had to suffer through, like it seems every year, with the injuries, losing Manu and Ramses during the middle of the season and having to battle through conference, but we finally got those players back so that we could finish on a note that I feel good about tonight. Like I said, in terms of what we did on this field. It was just unfortunate that we couldn’t find a way in the PKs.”
