CARSON, Calif. (Thursday, July 16, 2015) – LA Galaxy II (10-5-3, 33 points) earned a 1-1 draw at home on Thursday night on the Track & Field Stadium at StubHub Center behind a goal from forward Ariel Lassiter. The win puts Los Dos in first place in Western Conference Standings.
Galaxy II returned home with a familiar lineup as they met the OC Blues for the third time this season. LA Galaxy II head coach Curt Onalfo had most of his squad back together after traveling to Sacramento without Raul Mendiola, Daniel Steres, and Dave Romney as they put in minutes with the first team in a friendly 2-1 win over Club America.
After falling behind early in the 9th minute with a goal by Christopher Cortez, his third of the season, Los Dos continued to pressure Orange County’s backline. Ariel Lassiter almost leveled after he was able to beat his defender and cross the ball to find Jaime Villarreal, but he was called offside, leaving Los Dos trailing by one.
Just 10 minutes later, Lassiter found himself at the top of the box in a foot race with goalkeeper, Pepe Miranda, taking a shot that would deflected by the Orange County goalkeeper. Not giving up on the play, Lassiter quickly found the ball again, this time finding the back of the net in the 40th minute. It was Lassiter’s team-leading ninth goal of the season, tied for the fourth-most in USL.
The second half kicked off with the same intensity as Los Dos captain Daniel Steres stood tall when the OC Blues continued to pressure. French goalkeeper Clement Diop made a huge save when found himself stretched out in the air in the 64th minute to keep OC from taking the lead.
After earning a point at home, Galaxy II now stand at the top of the Western Conference standings, one point ahead of Seattle Sounders FC 2.
Galaxy II will now travel to face Portland Timbers 2 (6-9-2, 20 pts.) at Merlo field on Sunday, July 26 at 7p.m. PT. This match will mark the first-ever meeting between the two Western Conference clubs.
A complete LA Galaxy II 2015 schedule can be found here. All LA Galaxy II matches will be streamed live on www.lagalaxy.com with the majority of home matches broadcast by Time Warner Cable lead announcer Joe Tutino along with Ralph Perez.
Single-game tickets to remaining LA Galaxy II matches at StubHub Center can be purchased for $10 each. To purchase tickets, fans can visit www.lagalaxy.com/2 or call 877-3GALAXY (342-5299).
