(SAN MARCOS) PLNU Men's Soccer is officially off and running.
 
The Sea Lions picked up their first win of the 2022 season with a 2-0 road victory over Cal State San Marcos. London Lombana and Austin Lavell provided the goals.
 
"I'm happy for the boys," PLNU Head Coach Phil Wolf said. "We found our first goals and our first win of the season. It was a very difficult game, as Ron Pulvers (CSUSM Head Coach) always has his players well-drilled."
 
Late in the first half, Lavell latched onto the end of a Townsend Meyer through ball before being clattered into by the opposing goalkeeper inside the box, drawing both a penalty and a red card.
 
Lombana converted the ensuing spot kick in the 42nd minute to open up his PLNU account after transferring in from San Francisco State, putting the visiting Sea Lions up 1-0 at the break.
 
The Cougars held firm defensively for much of the second half, before Point Loma was finally able to add an insurance goal in the 84th minute courtesy of Lavell. This time Lombana turned from scorer to provider, playing Lavell through on the ground for him to calmly finish with his left foot.
 
"When we went a man up and a goal up, the game changed dramatically," Wolf said. "CSUSM was hard to break down and kept us from getting the second goal until very late."
 
Goalkeeper Seth Ketterer made five saves in goal to preserve the team's first shutout of the season.
 
Point Loma (1-3 overall) continues its four-match road trip with a venture up to the Pacific Northwest this upcoming week, with games against Seattle Pacific on Thursday and Western Washington on Saturday.