Page One

Mike Munoz is fast becoming an impact player for the Cal men’s soccer team. The freshman leads the team with six assists on the season, and on Sunday he scored a spectacular overtime goal, giving the Bears a 1-0 overtime win over Santa Clara. 

Munoz had just come on the field as a substitute in the 103rd minute of the game. One quick throw-in and pass from teammate Troy Roberts later, he was the hero. Taking the ball at the left corner of the Santa Clara box, he lofted a left-footed shot over Bronco goalkeeper Brenton Junge and into the upper right corner of the goal. Munoz stood stunned for a moment, then joined his teammates in a wild celebration. 

“That’s the biggest goal I’ve ever scored,” a grinning Munoz said after the clamor had died down. “Coach (Kevin) Grimes told me when he put me in to score a goal for him, and I did.” 

Grimes, along with every other spectator in at Edwards Stadium, was duly impressed by the strike. 

“That was just a world-class goal,” Grimes said. “That was one of the top five goals I’ve ever seen in college soccer, and probably the best in overtime.” 

The goal gave the Bears their fifth win in their last six games, with the only blemish in the run a 1-1 tie with Fresno State. It also gave them a huge push heading into their first Pac-10 matchup of the season, as they head to UCLA on Friday. 

“We’ve been building momentum for the last 2-3 weeks, and our confidence level is really high right now,” Grimes said. “We look at each game as a learning process, and we’re growing up fast.” 

Sunday’s win was especially sweet for the veteran Bears who were present at a 5-0 shellacking by the Broncos last season in Santa Clara. Munoz, who is one of seven freshmen receiving significant playing time this year, said the upperclassmen made it clear that this was a big game. 

“They told us about last year, and that made us young guys want it more,” Munoz said. “We have both youth and experience on the team, and that combination is unstoppable right now.”