WICHITA FALLS, Texas - Cal Poly Pomona scored once early and once late to get past a game squad from Westmont College, 2-1, in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship on Friday at host Midwestern State's Stang Park.

With the victory, 23rd-ranked California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) regular-season co-champion CPP improves to 13-1-7 overall. The Broncos are the seventh seed in this 10-team Super Region 4 bracket. Their school-record unbeaten streak continues now at 19 matches, as they have gone 12-0-7 since a Sept. 7 loss to Point Loma.

First-time Pacific West Conference tournament champion Westmont, the No. 10 seed in Super Region 4, sees its season ended at 12-5-4. The Warriors were winners of a season-best five straight and an undefeated 6-0-1 over their prior seven. It was the first-ever meeting between the two Southern California sides, with Westmont, from Santa Barbara, in just its second year as a Division II institution. This is in fact the first season the Warriors were eligible for an NCAA Championship berth.

Meanwhile, this is Cal Poly Pomona's 10th NCAA Division II Championship appearance all-time, including nine straight since 2015, and also the program's 10th consecutive campaign with postseason soccer. The Broncos are five for five in qualifying for the NCAA tournament under first-time CCAA Coach of the Year Matt O'Sullivan.

The result also adds to CPP's success on the grass surface of Stang Park, now at 6-1-1 all-time and 3-1 under O'Sullivan, though the Broncos did have their 2023 campaign finish at the venue in the third round to CCAA rival Cal State LA, 1-0.

The action came fast and furious from the opening whistle Friday as Westmont immediately generated the day's first threat within 40 seconds, fourth-year CPP goalkeeper Luke Garciduenas denying Leonel Olivo Ortiz from close range.

Then at just 1:09, the Broncos had the lead. Senior midfielder Mike Moser passed out to junior striker Sam Lena on the left wing. Lena rounded his defender and dribbled into the penalty area near the left end line before crossing it back over to Moser at the far post. Moser took two settling touches and shot left-footed into the bottom right for 1-0. It was his fifth goal of the season and 10th for the Green & Gold. Lena was later credited with the assist.
 

— Cal Poly Pomona Broncos (@cppbroncos) November 22, 2024

Junior forward Mads Frederiksen nearly made it 2-0 in the seventh minute, going coast-to-coast on a breakout from a Westmont corner kick on the opposite end, only for his right-footed shot from the right diagonal to be parried out for a CPP corner by goalie Mario Floriano.

In the 18th minute, Lena took a short through pass from fellow junior Woody Angell and galloped into the area before taking a left-footed shot that was also saved low by Floriano.

Westmont managed a well-worked equalizer at 20:17. Daniel Tuscano lofted in a long ball from the right side that Cash Anderholt tracked nicely and was able to send back across the middle of the six-yard box. That's where the Warriors' senior forward, Connor Lynch, was waiting to tap into the empty net for his eighth of the campaign. The assists were the seventh and third for Tuscano and Anderholt, respectively.

In the second half, Moser's right-footed direct free kick in the 63rd minute from the edge of the 18 was punched out by the right post for a corner kick by Floriano, who also turned away Angell in the 68th.

At 82:10, Frederiksen notched what proved to be the winner. The sequence began with a long ball by senior tri-captain and center back Fin Jackson, who had also fed Moser with a free kick in the lead-up of the game's opener. Lena was on the direct receiving end this time, and the Santa Monica product once more rounded his defender, sped toward the end line down the left flank, and provided a cross that Frederiksen turned in toward the far post for his fifth of 2024 and second decider. The Dane now has 10 college goals, five of them winners.
 

MADS FREDERIKSEN FOR THE LEAD ‼️#WeAreCPP pic.twitter.com/5MEFu7zeUV

— Cal Poly Pomona Broncos (@cppbroncos) November 22, 2024

Lena's first collegiate two-assist effort puts him alone atop the team chart with a career-best seven, as he leapfrogs senior teammate Max Laguna, who has six helpers. Lena's career haul increases to 11, with four assists now over the last four matches.

Junior striker Jakob Singh actually put the ball in the back of the net in the 88th minute, but the decision was offside. The Broncos still managed to see the remainder of the contest out to continue their season.

Garciduenas wound up with four saves. Floriano, a junior and first-year Fullerton College transfer making his first start between the Warrior posts, made five stops. CPP out-shot Westmont on the day, 11-9.

Up Next
CPP advances to play the No. 2 seed in Super Region 4, host Midwestern State University (14-2-3), in the second round of the 2024 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship, this Sunday, Nov. 24. Kickoff at Stang Park is slated for 1 p.m. PT (3 p.m. CT). The match can be viewed without charge through FloCollege, with a link available at broncoathletics.com.

As part of that strong history at Stang Park, the Broncos are 1-0-1 in twice putting an end to Midwestern State's season, in 2017 on penalty kicks in the national quarterfinals, and then again in 2021, 1-0.

Bronco Bits

• Cal Poly Pomona is 64-16-25 (.729) overall and 4-4-1 (.500) in NCAA Championship play under sixth-year (fifth season) head coach Matt O'Sullivan, who on Sept. 22 took over the No. 1 position in the CPP record book for wins.
• The Broncos moved to 5-1-5 away from home and 1-0-1 in neutral-site contests in 2024.
• O'Sullivan, who also currently boasts the top winning percentage in program annals, sent out his 16th different starting lineup in 21 games as true freshman midfielder Daniel Gutierrez came off the bench for the first time to leave no Broncos who have started all 21 matches.
• Woody Angell, who had started each of the first 10 games, was back in the 11 for the first time since Oct. 27 at Stanislaus State, the junior midfielder having missed the previous five contests with the exception of converting his penalty kick during the tiebreaker in last Sunday's CCAA Tournament final in Hayward.
• Luke Garciduenas, Joseph Spencer and senior tri-captains Fin Jackson and Jasper Winslow played the full 90 minutes.
• Out of 1,910 minutes played this season, the Broncos have trailed for just 195:27.
• This is the fourth straight year that CPP has produced an unbeaten streak of double-digit games.
• The Broncos have struck first, all over the first 16 minutes, in seven of their last eight matches.
• CPP is 16-9-3 in its 10th NCAA Championship appearance all-time, including 5-1 in the first round, 11-4-2 at neutral sites and 1-0 against Westmont.
• CPP is 77-23-23 as a nationally-ranked program since 2002, including 39-10-22 under O'Sullivan and 11-1-7 in 2024.