HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay men's soccer team lost in devastating fashion at home on Wednesday night as the visitors from Stanislaus State rallied to tie the game late in the second half before scoring the golden goal 16 seconds into overtime to secure a 3-2 victory.

It was an exciting, back-and forth contest with lots of scoring chances for both sides, as well as eight total yellow cards issued. The Warriors (9-1-0, 4-1-0 CCAA) narrowly out-shot the Pioneers 17-to-15 for the game and put 12 shots on goal, making East Bay goalkeeper Adrian Topete work hard for his nine saves.

"It's always brutal to lose, especially in overtime and especially tonight," said head coach Andy Cumbo. "But I thought the guys did a great job of saying disciplined and focused on the objectives."

The Pioneers held the lead on two separate occasions in this game. With less than 20 seconds before halftime, Fernando Herrera fired a cross from the left corner into the box, and Kevin Perez managed to tip the ball through some traffic in front of the net for a goal.

Less than six minutes later, Stanislaus's Jose Ramirez got behind the Pioneer defense and took a shot from just inside the box. Topete made the initial save, but the ball rebounded to Ryan Chaney, who scored to the left post.

It was still 1-1 at halftime, and the Pioneers looked to take control on their home field in the second half. In the 62nd minute, they scored a beautiful goal as Jeremy Romero dribbled in close and took a shot from the left side. It deflected off the keeper to Kalle Sjogrell, who blasted it into the top of the net to make it 2-1 Pioneers.

But once again, the advantage was short-lived. Luis Hernandez passed over the top to Josue Barajas, who dribbled into the box for the Warriors in the 81st minute. Topete charged out at him, but Barajas managed to chip a shot over the Pioneer keeper's head into the net. 

The team headed to overtime tied 2-2, where the Warriors carried over their momentum and capitalized immediately. Just 16 second into the overtime period, Manny Villegas dribbled up the far right side and took a shot from about 10 yards that found the back of the net for the golden goal. 

"We had our moments to out the game away, but we were unable to close it out tonight," Cumbo commented. "There's a reason why Stanislaus has only lost on game; they're organized, effective, and good at what they do, We will regroup and be ready for a tough opponent at Chico on Friday.

After a day off, the Pioneers (2-7-0, 1-4-0) hit the road again for a 7 p.m. match on Friday, Oct. 2 at Chico State.