LIVERMORE, Calif. – Cal State East Bay men's soccer delivered a statement performance Friday afternoon, overwhelming Cal Poly Humboldt in a 6–1 victory at Las Positas College Soccer Field. The Pioneers' offensive outburst featured six different goal scorers to run their unbeaten streak to four straight matches and improved to 3-3-3 overall and 1-0-2 in CCAA play.
East Bay wasted no time setting the tone, pressing high and controlling possession early. In the 16th minute, Jonas Banouas opened the scoring off a perfect pass in front of the net from Alejandro Zarate, giving the Pioneers a 1–0 lead. The home side doubled the advantage in the 36th minute when Julian Valle fired home a shot from the top of the box for his second goal of the season.
The Pioneers came out even stronger after halftime, pouring in four goals in a 25-minute span to put the match away. Zarate made it 3–0 in the 59th minute with a blast from 25 yards out for his team leading fourth goal of the season. Humboldt briefly pulled one back a minute later through Nathan Murff but East Bay responded immediately.
In the 61st minute, Eugenio Perez-Vera Merino buried a header from the back post off a service from Franco De Luna to restore the three-goal cushion. Just over a minute later, Andres Garcia-Diaz added his first collegiate goal on an assist from Zarate, stretching the lead to 5–1. Oliver Gonzalez capped the scoring in the 82nd minute, knocking home a shot from the top off the box on a pass from Noel Cabrales to complete the 6–1 rout.
The six goals is the most in a match for the Pioneers since 2015 as they totaled 26 shots, nine on goal, while limiting Humboldt to just seven attempts. Julian Escobar earned the win in net, making one save in a composed 90-minute effort. Zarate paced East Bay's attack with a goal and two assists, while five other Pioneers joined him on the scoresheet.
The victory marked East Bay's largest margin of victory since joining the CCAA and the Pioneers will look to continue their strong play on Sunday when they travel south to take on Cal State San Marcos.
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