In last season’s Riverside Derby, a pair of goals failed to separate the biggest rivalry in the Inland Empire. The 1-1 draw failed to establish Riverside supremacy in 2023, and the result only built up anticipation for Wednesday night’s game. With 1,277 fans attending the California Baptist University (CBU) Soccer Stadium, the stage was set for the University of California Riverside (UCR) Highlanders and the CBU Lancers.
Despite the home field advantage, the Lancers were on the back foot from the opening whistle. The plan from UCR head coach Tim Cupello was clear from the get-go. He wanted his guys to push around and take out the smaller Lancers. This strategy led to a couple of early chances for senior Lukas Juodkunaitis, but the Latvian winger couldn’t force a save from CBU’s sophomore goalkeeper, Hugo Do Rego.
While the Highlanders were the livelier team early on, the Lancers didn’t shy away from the physical nature of this game. Once they found their footing, the home side regained control of the game. The Lancers started taking more of the possession and matched UCR’s tempo. CBU started creating chances of their own by attacking the flanks with wingers Josh Hallenberger and Andrew Lovell. The former looked especially dangerous on CBU’s right side.
Working against UCR’s freshman Oscar Emilio Trujillo Lizáragga, Hallenberger used his experience and quick first step to get around the young fullback. Rather than look to shoot, Hallenberger whipped crosses into the box and exploited the space in between the UCR center backs. First, he found the right foot of graduate forward Leo Mendez. Then, Hallenberger’s second cross connected with the head of senior fullback David Cordes. Both Mendez and Cordes were able to direct their shots on target, but a pair of incredible reflex saves from senior goalkeeper Carlos Gonzalez kept the Highlanders level.
By focusing their attack along the touchlines, the Lancers were able to win plenty of corner kicks. They would load the box and send in high inswingers, making it hard for Gonzalez to make a play on the ball. Late in the first half, CBU’s graduate center back Alex Henderson won a header off a corner kick from teammate Erik Krohnstad, but a goal line clearance from Trujillo Lizáragga kept the scoreline at nil-nil.
The Lancers kept pouring on the pressure. Hallenberger made way for freshman Jiro Uchida, but the young winger was eager to find his teammates on the end of crosses and cutbacks. Uchida showed off his flair by cutting it back to Drew Hardin with a backheel pass, but the sophomore midfielder could only roll the ball into Gonzalez’s waiting hands.
The Highlanders desperately needed a change, so Cupello brought on junior forward Wes Hastings. The Oceanside native injected some life into the Highlanders in the second half. After a perfectly weighted through ball from junior midfielder Kevin Meza, Hastings was denied by Do Rego, who was charging right at him. Do Rego denied Hastings once again, but this time from a header. However, a few moments later, Hastings drew a foul in the box against CBU’s sophomore center back Otto Gustafsson for a UCR penalty kick.
Senior forward Luka Lukic stepped up to take the spot kick. Lukic goes low and down the middle, but Do Rego’s outstretched leg is able to parry it away. This crucial save raised the blood pressure of everyone on the field, and the last 20 minutes of the game was extremely chippy on both sides. The game remained scoreless and both rivals would have to settle for a 0-0 draw.
Although the scoreline would suggest otherwise, this was a very exciting game that lived up to the expectations of the Riverside Derby. Gonzalez and Do Rego each made huge saves for their teams time and time again. Both teams will feel disappointed with the result, but the Highlanders performed admirably in such a high-stakes game. Cupello has this team trending in the right direction and these performances should start translating into wins. This week, the Highlanders start conference play on the road against the California State University, Northridge Matadors on Oct. 2. Last season’s matchup ended in a 0-0 draw. Still, this year the Matadors will be without MLS SuperDraft first round pick Jamar Ricketts.
