SEATTLE – The No. 13 California Golden Bears (6-2-0, 0-1-0 Pac-12) dropped their Pac-12 opener to the No. 5 Washington Huskies (8-1-0, 1-0-0 Pac-12) 3-2 at Husky Soccer Stadium in Seattle on Thursday night. Senior forward Stefano Bonomo returned to the lineup, coming on as a first half substitute and scored his sixth goal of the season in the 34th minute off of an assist from Pac-12 point leader Connor Hallisey. Huskies senior forward Darwin Jones tallied a brace, book-ending goals in the first and second half to push the Huskies’ advantage to 2-1. Redshirt freshman Beau Blanchard scored his first career goal for the Huskies in the 74th minute in what turned out to be the game-winner. Cal was not finished however, as senior co-captain Seth Casiple brought the Bears within a goal 3-2 when he converted a penalty in the 87th, but it was not enough for the Golden Bears, who fell for the first time in seven matches.

“It was a well-played game tonight by both teams,” head coach Kevin Grimes said on Thursday night. “We had great looks at goal tonight and we need to build off of that moving forward.”

Both sides had some early scoring opportunities and it wasn’t until the 33rd minute that Cal broke through with the opener. Hallisey slid the ball through for an oncoming Bonomo, who dribbled around Washington goalkeeper Spencer Richey and tucked it home from a tough angle to push the Bears in front. Hallisey’s assist marked the seventh consecutive match in which he has registered at least one point, and now has 21 through just eight games.

It was nearly 2-0 just two minutes later in favor of the Bears when sophomore forward Christian Thierjung played a deft ball into space for Hallisey, but his shot from close range was saved well by Richey, keeping things at 1-0.

The Huskies made Cal pay for not extending their advantage in the 38th minute of play. Jones struck a free kick from distance and after a slight deflection off of the wall, things were brought level, as the shot beat Cal goalkeeper Justin Taillole to his near post. Jones posted his sixth goal of the season, which leads Washington.

After the break it was Jones again striking for the Huskies, as he finished well past Taillole on the counterattack by Washington. He was played in on goal by Lange, and Jones was able to slot it past the goalkeeper for his seventh goal of the campaign.

The Bears threatened to equalize countless times, however it was Washington who tallied their third in the 74th minute. A low cross played in by freshman Henry Wingo found Blanchard at the penalty spot and he finished coolly, low into the far post with a first-time strike.

Cal was not done yet, however, as Hallisey’s long run drew a penalty. Casiple finished his 87th minute penalty clinically into the corner past a diving Richey to pull the Bears within a goal, but Washington was able to hold Cal off for the final three minutes to take the victory.

The Bears continue their tour of the Pacific Northwest on Sunday, Oct. 5 when the Bears square off against the Oregon State Beavers in Corvallis, Ore. at 3 p.m. PT. That match will also be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks. Fans are encouraged to interact with @CalMensSoccer on Twitter during the match and can stay up to date on statistics and live updates during the games.

                                    1          2          F
No. 13 Cal                   1          1          2
No. 5 Washington        1          2          3
 
Scoring Summary
Cal –  32:44    Bonomo, Stefano (Hallisey, Connor)
UW –  37:37    Jones, Darwin (unassisted)
UW –  55:38    Jones, Darwin (Lange, Ian)
UW –  73:55    Blanchard, Beau (Wingo, Henry)
Cal –  86.29    Casiple, Seth (penalty)

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