Men's soccer team beats Orange Coast, sits in second in OEC

Men's soccer team beats Orange Coast, sits in second in OEC

The Irvine Valley men's soccer team scored two goals in the first half and another in the second to win, 3-1, at Orange Coast in an Orange Empire Conference match on Tuesday.

The Lasers improved their record to 7-7-0 overall and 3-2-0 in conference action. The team is in second place in the OEC standings behind Golden West.

Orange Coast slipped to 4-5-2 overall and 0-3-1 in conference.

The Lasers scored two goals within in a five-minute span midway through the half to take control.

Sophomore forward Izzy Abdelkader put the Lasers on the board in the 17th minute off an assist from Ivan Lopez.

And then in the 22nd minute, sophomore midfielder Victor Onofre scored off a pass from Abdelkader to make it a 2-0 game.

But Orange Coast pulled within a goal just before halftime. 

IVC gave the ball away and the Pirates took advantage with Tony Varona scoring off a pass from Danny Vargas in the 42nd minute.

Irvine Valley led, 2-1, at the half.

And it stayed that way until the Lasers put the game out of reach in the 64th minute when sophomore defender Garrett Hayes cleared a ball to Onofre, who went 1 on 1 with OCC keeper Luke Fyvie and scored.

The two goals by Onofre where his fourth and fifth of the season. He tied Lopez for the team lead.

Lopez recorded his team-leading fourth and fifth assists of the year and Abdelkader had his fourth goal and first assist.

IVC freshman Thomas Hutchinson, making his second-straight appearance in goal, had five saves in the win.

The Lasers have a big contest on Friday, hosting Santa Ana, which is in third place in the standings, at the OC Great Park. The game is scheduled for Field 7 and fans are welcome with social distancing.