The Irvrine Valley men's soccer team picked up its biggest victory of the 2021 season, shutting out Rio Hondo, 2-0, on the road Thursday night.
The Lasers handed Rio Hondo, which was ranked No. 7 in this week's California Community College Sports Information Association (CCCSIA) poll, its first loss of the year.
Irvine Valley has now taken on No. 1 Hartnell, No. 2 Taft, No. 3 El Camino, No. 7 Rio Hondo and No. 12 Cerritos.
With the win over Rio Hondo, IVC also bounced back from a tough 3-0 defeat to No. 2 Taft on Tuesday at the OC Great Park.
Irvine Valley improved its record to 4-5-0 overall, while the Roadrunners slipped to 4-1-1 overall.
"It was a good win and the boys played well in what was a very scrappy, hard-fought game," Irrvine Valley Coach Martin McGrogan said.
IVC took the lead about 20 minutes in when sophomore forward Izzy Abdelkader scored on a header off an assist from freshman forward Ivan Lopez.
The game stayed that way until the final minutes, although IVC had serval chances along the way.
Freshman midfielder Sam Al Qaraghuli put the match away with a goal off a feed from freshman midfielder Andrew Darke.
Irvine Valley freshman keeper Isaac Hernandez made six saves in goal to earn the shutout.
IVC plays again next Tuesday against another ranked team. The Lasers host No. 15 Cypress to open Orange Empire Conference play at the OC Great Park at 3 p.m.
The field we be confirmed on Monday. Fans are welcome in attendance with social distancing.
