Bench boost pushes UC Merced men to easy soccer win

Albert Martins knew his team needed a pick-me-up.

His UC Merced men’s soccer team held a one-goal lead at intermission Tuesday afternoon, but with a red card and a handful of starters out because of injuries, the Bobcats lacked energy.

Martins turned to his bench for a spark. The tandem of Christian Basulto and Cruz Trenado answered the call. The pair’s pace and tenacity instantly upped the UC Merced defensive pressure and helped provide a goal and an assist after the break. The Bobcats never eased up from there, cruising to a 5-0 victory over Bethesda University of Anaheim at Lake Field.

“We were missing a few regulars with injuries and (Luis Martinez Stucchi) was out with a red card, and I think we played the first half a little cautious as a result,” Martins said. “We threw some guys in there in the second half to try and shake things up, and it was a very different result. We call (Basulto) ‘Cheech,’ and just his pace is enough to disrupt things.”

Basulto certainly did, complementing the play of junior Cody Golbad on the opposite wing.

Golbad helped open the scoring five minutes in when he made a knifing run in from the right wing. The defense collapsed on the reigning California Pacific Conference Player of the Year, who promptly slipped a ball into the sprinting path of teammate Artemio Contreras. The freshman from Modesto slotted his shot under the charging goalkeeper for his first collegiate goal.

That was pretty much it for the Bobcats’ (1-1) offense in the first 45 minutes. They were fortunate to take the lead into halftime after the Bethesda (1-1-1) counterattack produced two very near misses.

The second half was a very different story, as Merced began employing the high-pressure defense it has been known for the past two years. With the Bobcats no longer giving the Flames free space in the middle, Bethesda regularly turned over the ball and Merced took full advantage.

Trenado doubled the lead five minutes into the second half as Bethesda goalkeeper Oscar Gomez couldn’t handle a Golbad shot. Trenado beat Gomez to the loose ball, deftly touched it around the big goalkeeper, and tapped into the empty net.

The second goal seemed to deflate the visitors, and UCM doubled its energy.

Golbad was finally rewarded for his hard work up top, converting an easy tap-in after Basulto made a brilliant run down the right wing in the 58th minute. Estevan Salgado made it 4-0 with a back-door volley in the 69th minute, and Contreras added a second goal in the 82nd minute.

“The first goal really brought my confidence up,” Contreras said. “The second half, coach brought in players that really got us going on the wings. That opened up space in the middle for the rest of us.

“It’s nice to post the shutout and score five goals in our first win. Now we have to get ready for a tough trip down south.”

Women’s soccer

UC Merced 5, Bethesda 0 – Daisy Bonilla continued her torrid start to the season by scoring a hat trick and adding an assist as the Bobcats improved to 2-0-1.

The Merced defense extended its scoreless streak to 200 minutes to start the season.

This story was originally published September 2, 2015 at 3:39 PM with the headline "Bench boost pushes UC Merced men to easy soccer win."