STRONG OFFENSIVE SHOWING NOT ENOUGH AS OXNARD FALLS TO FC GOLDEN STATE 3-2

Saturday night at Campo Guerrero the Oxnard Guerreros welcomed conference leaders FC Golden State to town in a matchup that could continue one team’s good form or flip another team’s fortunes.

The Guerreros were hosting their second home opener in the NPSL with the support of over 250 fans in attendance and the Oxnard Guerreros Youth Academy, which began in the fall of 2017. While the home side did not win, it was a fun family-friendly atmosphere to all who attended, and a wildly entertaining match for any fútbol fan.

FC Golden State would prevail and hold on to their top spot in the region after a 3-2 win. This win allowed FC Golden State to extend their unbeaten streak to five games and takes the Guerreros’ losing streak to two games.

“It’s a mental issue,” Head Coach Juan Florez said. “We need to work on it a lot and recreate that situation the best we can in practice.”

Oxnard would get the scoring started with Alberto Anguiano in the 38th minute after a well- worked dribble move by Moises Orozco freed up space and allowed him to slide a ball in to Anguiano, who would slot it home with ease.

The lead would not last long though as FC Golden State would find a penetrating pass in the 40th minute that forced Tomas Araujo to make a last-ditch effort to stop the shot, but the tackle backfired as Araujo rocketed the ball past the keeper and into his own net.

The score would stay level as they entered the half, but it was clear that there were more goals coming as both teams finished the half with dangerous chances on goal.

It wouldn’t be long before Oxnard would again grab the lead as Moises Orozco made it two goals in as many games. Orozco would step up to the free kick and curl it around the wall and into the bottom right hand corner to give his team a 2-1 lead in the 56th minute.

“Individually I work hard,” Orozco said of his top form this year. “I go to every training, and I try to stay connected as much as I can with the team.”

The mental lapses would again set in for Oxnard as FC Golden State pressed on and in the 65th minute would equalize for the second time on the night. Poor defensive play would lead to an opening for FC Golden State and Luis Gonzalez would punish his opposition.

The game would stay deadlocked for a majority of the second half until the 85th minute when FC Golden State would earn themselves a corner. The corner was swung in and put in a dangerous spot, and this allowed Erlys Garcia to have a free run into the open space. Garcia would rise up and head the ball home and give his club the 3-2 lead.

Oxnard would continue to high press in search of the equalizer, but time was not on their side and they would ultimately fall by a score of 3-2 in a battle against FC Golden State.

“We need to keep learning our system, and we need to keep improving in the areas we need improvement,” Florez concluded. “We need to analyze and plan for the opponent.”

Oxnard will have a week to analyze and prepare for their next opponent Temecula FC, who are also coming off of a loss against ASC San Diego and will be looking to bounce back.