CSUN Soccer Team Wins 35th in a Row on Home Field, 4-1

The Cal State Northridge soccer team will not play another game for 10 days. It’s a welcome break for CSUN, which has played six games in 11 days, but it’s an even bigger windfall for the rest of collegiate soccer.

Few teams would want to face the streaking Matadors right now, anyway.

Joey Kirk recorded his fourth two-goal game of the season as the Matadors beat Division III Claremont-Mudd, 4-1, Wednesday night in a nonconference game at North Campus Stadium. CSUN has not lost a regular season home game since Oct. 29, 1983, a streak of 35 games.

The Matadors (6-0), ranked fifth in Division II, are one victory away from tying the school record for consecutive wins.

The best start ever by a CSUN soccer team was in 1983 when the Matadors began the season 8-0-2. The longest unbeaten streak is 13 games (1984 and ‘86).

Northridge controlled the ball for most of the first half Wednesday as Claremont-Mudd, which has won six straight Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles, was unable to get a shot on goal until 17 1/2 minutes had elapsed.

Rodney Batt scored the Matadors’ first goal on a rebound after Alex Herrera fired a shot off the chest of Stag goalie Stephen Goodson from the top of the penalty area. The ball spun to the left of the goal mouth and Batt kicked it in for his second goal of the season.

Kirk scored his 10th goal 31 minutes into the game after taking a pass from Henry Vasquez, who was at midfield. Kirk dribbled about 15 yards down the left sideline then fired a shot just beyond the reach of Goodson just inside the right goal post to put the Matadors ahead, 2-0.

Kirk made the score 3-1 nine minutes to go in the game on an assist from Steve Harvey. Kirk, who has 21 points this season, has 106 in his career and is three points short of the school record for career points held by John Tronson. Kirk, with 39 career goals, is six shy of the record held by Jose Perez.

But he wasn’t happy with the team’s performance against Claremont.

“We sank to their level tonight and we can’t afford to do that,” said Kirk, who has more than half of the Matadors’ 18 goals this season. “They put a man-to-man defense on us tonight and we should have destroyed them.”

Vasquez scored the other CSUN goal 1:30 into the second half on a shot 10 yards out on the right side after he took a pass from Alberto Florez.

Claremont-Mudd (2-2) scored 2:30 into the second half when Alex Freitas beat CSUN goalie Willie Lopez to make it 3-1.

CSUN doesn’t play again until Sept. 26 against Westmont, but CSUN Coach Marwan Ass’ad won’t give his team a chance to lose its momentum.

“I can guarantee you that our days off will not be for rest,” Ass’ad said. “This could not have come at a better time. We need a lot of physical work and a lot of tactical work, as well.”