The Irvine Valley men’s soccer team won its fourth straight game and recorded its first shutout of the season with a 3-0 victory over Glendale in a non-conference match Friday afternoon at Irvine Valley.
It was also Irvine Valley’s second win in as many days. The Lasers defeated Rio Hondo, 2-1, on the road on Thursday.
Friday’s victory improved the Lasers’ record to 5-2-0 on the season. Glendale slipped to 1-5-2.
“This is a very talented group,” Irvine Valley Coach Martin McGrogan said. “There are a lot of players with a lot of ability. The players are learning a little more about each other out there and hopefully our play is getting a lot tighter. We just have to continue to work hard as a group.”
Irvine Valley didn’t waste much time, jumping out to a 1-0 lead on Friday. Freshman forward Bruno Sad took a pass from sophomore midfielder Mark Shadrack and beat Glendale keeper Gildardo Aguirre with a shot to put IVC ahead.
The Lasers had several more opportunities to score in the first half, including a header at close range by sophomore forward Erik Van Der Meulen that was cleared off the goal line and an attempt in the box by freshman midfielder Jack Plummer that was saved by Aguirre.
But Irvine Valley did take a 2-0 lead going into halftime. In the final minute of the half, freshman midfielder Ashley Cattermole, who had come on to the field as a reserve, received a pass from Sad in the middle of the box and drilled a left-footed shot into the back of the net.
The Lasers put the game away midway through the second half when Cattermole showed some nifty footwork to earn his second goal of the game. A deep throw in by freshman midfielder Miguel Banos into the box found Cattermole. He took one touch of the ball, flicking it to himself and then fired a shot in.
Irvine Valley ended up out-shooting Glendale, 15-4, in the contest. IVC freshman goalie Mikhail Radchuk made just one save in earning his first shutout of the season.
The match was Irvine Valley’s final non-conference contest of the season. The team opens Orange Empire Conference action next Tuesday at Riverside (on the school’s Norco campus) at 3 p.m.