The Golden Eagles, now ranked number three in the nation, are on a roll. They won their ninth straight match of the season, but it did not come easy.

Sonoma State was up for the challenge, defending and deflecting the ball all game, making it tough for the birds to score. 

Despite the strong defense from the Seawolves, the Golden Eagles were not backing down. They put up a serious fight and finally scored in the 98th minute. 

Midfielder Tim Klefisch was racing down the field and rocketed a shot to end the game. Klefisch got some fortuitous help from his teammates. The game ending goal started off as a pass from Leonardo Nogueira to David Elizaga, but was deflected by a Seawolves defender. The ball ended up at Klefisch’s feet, and goal.

Relief and happiness was all over the Cal State LA players’ faces, as they secured the win and another three points in the conference standings. 

Klefisch said the heat made it difficult to play, but they knew they had to win and he’s happy his team kept pushing.

Although the Golden Eagles walked away with the win in overtime, head coach Chris Chamides was not pleased by his players’ performance. He felt they looked a little slow on the field.

“I don’t think we had our best game today, but we concentrated and made sure we did not concede a goal,” he said.

He mentioned a couple of improvements he wants to see from his players as they head on the road for their upcoming games. He wants to see them be sharper with the ball, and he wants their one-on-one defending to get better. 

“We are working on these things day in and day out. If we can continue to improve, then I know we can be a strong team at the end, but right now we still have more work to do and this game showed us that.” 

Like Chamides, Klefisch agreed that the team did not have a great performance. After coming off a 6-0 win against Cal State Dominguez Hills, he thought his teammates did not take this game seriously enough. 

“We have to bounce back and not lose the ball so much like we did today,” he said. 

Chamides is hoping that his team will learn from this game and prepare for the upcoming matches. If they can do that he feels he can be optimistic about the rest of the season. 

The Golden Eagles will take on the Coyotes of Cal State San Bernardino on Thursday.