The University of Redlands men's soccer team looked to maintain its first-place position when it faced off against the second-place Occidental Tigers in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) action on Wednesday night under the lights at Farquhar Field. Although the visitors were considered an evenly-matched team on paper, the Bulldogs utilized an early score and poised physicality on defense to out-play the Tigers in most aspects of the contest.  With the 1-0 victory, Redlands stretches its first-place lead in the conference standings by four points.

The Bulldogs were challenged early, as the Tigers' offense was clicking on quality connections. Nonetheless, Redlands' defensive unit of junior Tom Elsea, (Mission Viejo, CA), senior Peter Marsden (Woodside, CA), sophomore Colin Zaccagnio (Phoenix, AZ), and sophomore Keoni Yates (Kailua-Kona, HI) commanded their half of the pitch to keep the game at nil. Sophomore goalkeeper Josh Haskill (Lakewood, CA) also made a crucial save on the first opportunity for the Tigers by hauling in an attempted header in the sixth minute for one of his three first-half saves.

Redlands hopped on the board in the 22nd minute of play, as sophomore forward Chase Boone (Beaverton, OR) and sophomore midfielder Sergio Valencia (San Jose, CA) teamed up to find fellow sophomore midfielder Casey ChubbFertal (Eugene, OR) in the front of the box for a top-shelf netter.

Sophomore forward Alexander Knox (Kirkland, WA) looked to continue the momentum for the Bulldogs by firing off three shots to end the first half.

Occidental came out energized in the second half of play, but the Bulldogs' defense quickly deflated the Tigers' efforts by effectively marking key players and shutting down lanes with ease. Freshman midfielders Arman Mogharei (Danville, CA) and Jesus Avalos (La Quinta, CA) contributed to the aggressive yet successful defense to maintain the shutout.

Haskill remained extremely active between the posts by hauling in three saves in the second half for the 1-0 victory.

The Bulldogs carted a heavy hoof by launching 25 shots, with Boone and Avalos firing off five shots each. Freshman forward Kayvon Parsa (West Hills, CA), Knox and, ChubbFertal each registered four shots.

The Maroon and Gray earns its seventh-consecutive victory and fourth-consecutive shutout, due in part to Haskill, who remains undefeated between the posts with a 7-0-2 record. Furthermore, the defensive work of Elsea, Zaccagnio, Marsden, and Yates cannot be overlooked as their smart, physical nature of play set the tone for the Bulldog's success.

Head Coach Ralph Perez was satisfied with the team's fourth-consecutive shutout in SCIAC play.

"We have been stressing and emphasizing about being the team that can create a shutout if possible," said Perez. "We knew [Oxy] would be a tough team to score upon... It was really important to try and get our guys to manage the game."

While the Bulldogs currently own the top spot in conference, Perez emphasized the importance of not underestimating the remainder of the season.

"We are all about the now... We have to keep doing what we're doing and maintaining it."

Redlands (12-2-2, 10-2-1 SCIAC) takes to the road on Saturday, October 24, for an 11 a.m. showdown with the Whittier College Poets.