CSUN Draws With Houston Christian, 2-2

Friday, September 4

Northridge, Calif

7:00 p.m.

California State University at Northridge

2-1-1, 0-0-0

Houston Christian

1-3-1, 0-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Houston Christian	1	1	2
CSUN	1	1	2

Photo by: Bella A Enriquez

CSUN Draws With Houston Christian, 2-2

9/4/2026 11:19:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

NORTHRIDGE, Calif. --- CSUN men's soccer (2-1-1) battled the Houston Christian Huskies to a 2-2 draw Friday night at Matador Soccer Field. Francisco Garibay scored his first career goal in the 42nd minute while Tito Oyewo notched his second goal of the season in the 79th minute.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Huskies had an early penalty kick just before the third minute that put pressure on goalkeeper Dorian Drucks right out of the gate. Drucks responded. A right foot strike from HCU's top player Ryan Okerayi was saved on the left side by Drucks, causing a roar from the Matador bench.

The game went back and forth early on, as CSUN had three shots off target, all in the seventh minute.

CSUN controlled much of the possession, but Houston Christian got the ball on its attacking half in the 31st minute. HCU capitalized when Callum Niven found the back of the net on assist from Okerayi to give the Huskies an early 1-0 lead.

Houston Christian had the lead for just 11 minutes, as the Matadors revved up the offense and created opportunities in the box. Michael Blevins played a touch pass from the left side to Garibay at the top of the box, and the sophomore from Oxnard fired a shot from 18 yards into the net to level the match at 1-1. The score would remain that way heading into intermission.

In the second half, CSUN once again made the Huskies work, as the Matadors controlled the attack, looking for the right moment to strike. That moment came in the 79th minute. Off a throw-in, Messiah Antwi found Oyewo, who saw an opening and headed the ball into the back of the net to give the Matadors their first lead of the night, 2-1.

The lead, however, was short lived. Houston Christian was awarded a penalty kick moments later, and Niven converted to tie the match at two apiece.

CSUN had opportunities to regain the lead late, including shots from Oyewo and Antwi, but neither found the target. Despite the tie, CSUN ended its three game homestand undefeated.

NOTES OF THE GAME

The Matadors controlled much of the match, finishing with a 16-8 advantage in shots and holding 67% of possession.
CSUN earned six corner kicks to the Huskies' three.
Drucks finished the match with two saves.
Daniel Garcia and Oyewo played all 90 minutes.
CSUN hasn't dropped a contest at Matador Soccer Field in its last five matches.
HCU committed 27 fouls to CSUN's 12.

ACCORDING TO HEAD COACH TERRY DAVILA

"There's a lot of things in this game that happened that we could have fallen apart on. We could have gave up, gotten upset and lost three points. But we tied the game. I'm a little disappointed that we're up 2-1 and then give up a PK. It's a tough call, but you've got to respect that. I can see how he made it. It was just a tough game tonight. A lot of things happened, and I thought we persevered through."

ON FRANCISCO GARIBAY'S GOAL
"Yeah, Frankie's a good player, man. He's been trying to get into the starting lineup, and he's definitely pushing. He's knocking on the door on being a top-11 player. He actually spoke loud tonight. He spoke very big tonight, so I'm happy for him. He's making it difficult on the staff."

ON TITO OYEWO'S GOAL
"Tito has gone through a lot. He had a horrific injury, and he got back. Last year was a year of getting himself fit, and he's getting himself going. He has really been contributing. I'm happy for him as a person, and happy he's getting his opportunity."

UP NEXT
CSUN faces its toughest matchup of the season yet. The Matadors will take on the number one ranked team in the country, the Stanford Cardinal at Maloney Field at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium, Monday, Sep. 7 at 4:00 p.m.
#GoMatadors