Titans Upset No. 1 Indiana in Soccer

Down to nine men on the field at the final whistle, relying on a backup goalkeeper so unprepared to play that he forgot his jersey in the locker room, the Cal State Fullerton men’s soccer team weathered attrition and the fog Friday evening to upset top-ranked Indiana, 3-2, in overtime in the UCLA/adidas Met Life Classic.

Eddie Soto’s penalty kick in the 103rd minute proved the difference as an injury depleted Fullerton team held on to stop Indiana’s 15-game winning streak in front of 1,100 at UCLA’s Spaulding Field.

Fullerton (10-6-1) played the last 24 minutes of regulation without goalkeeper Mike Kornock, who received a red card for hand contact with the ball outside the penalty area during a violent collision with Indiana midfielder Craig Ginsberg.

The Titans also lost midfielder Joey Franchino, who received his second yellow card in the 116th minute, forcing Fullerton to play the last four minutes with nine men to Indiana’s 10. The Hoosiers had defender Mike Clark sent off with a red card in the 83rd minute.

“You have to be a much better coach than me to think we’d beat No. 1 Indiana playing down a man,” Fullerton Coach Al Mistri said. “To play 10 versus 11 . . . is harder than hell against anyone, let alone the top team in the nation.”

Fullerton played the last 54 minutes with reserve goalkeeper Justin Johnston, who had not played a minute in the Titans’ first 16 games.

“Hell of a baptism, eh?” Mistri said. “You want to know how sure he was that he wasn’t going to play tonight? He left his keeper’s jersey in the locker room. We had to send him out there in a warm-up jacket.”

Johnston held Indiana (16-2) scoreless the rest of the way, denying Brian Maisonneuve with a lunging save in the final minute.

Soto scored the game winner on a penalty after Fullerton midfielder Matt Bradbury was taken down in the box by Clark late in the first overtime period.

Ricky Rodriguez, in the ninth minute, and Brad Wilson, in the 31st, accounted for Fullerton’s goals during regulation. Indiana equalized with Maisonneuve’s header off a free kick in the 14th minute and took a 2-1 lead two minutes later on a penalty kick by Clark.