SJ Quakes, LA Galaxy Draw at Stanford Stadium

Fouls, yellow cards, and conflict became the story of the California Clasico on Saturday night. But both teams remained level, drawing 1-1 in another edition of the rivalry.

The San Jose Earthquakes and the Los Angeles Galaxy met up for a rivalry battle on June 29th, with the host being Stanford Stadium. This had been an annual tradition for over a decade, with intrigue-filled games every season. This year wasn’t as great, but still was a fun one for the rivalry.

Just 20 seconds into the game, things got interesting. A Quakes winger had a clear path to the goal, but Mathias Jorgensen of LA grabbed him by the back, causing an early yellow card. That quickly led to two solid chances for San Jose, but neither converted.

In the 15th minute, Beau Leroux found an open pocket just above the box, and took an incredible shot that hit the back of the net. The goalkeeper made a valiant effort, but no one was saving that shot. The rest of the first half stayed neutral, and while the Galaxy had opportunities, none hit the back of the net.

In the second half, things started to pick up. Both teams pushed the offense, getting countless opportunities, but the defensive stability from both also started to show.

Finally in the 69th minute, Marco Reus leveled the scoring. He had been on fire all game, and finally added to the scoresheet late to equalize the contest. It wasn’t very pretty, but he had got the job done, just like all game. Both teams stood strong, defending for their lives, and showing how important not losing to their rivals meant.

The game ended 1-1, with goals from Beau Leroux and Marco Reus.

San Jose is continuing their hot streak. Since May 3rd, they have just one loss in 12 games, coming to St. Louis City FC on a last minute penalty. They sit at sixth in the Western Conference standings, and are continuing their US Open Cup run, where they currently sit in the quarterfinals. Although a win would help more, a draw continues their incredible streak regardless.

Los Angeles is in a whole different boat. Coming off of a championship last season, the Galaxy came into the season expecting to follow that up with a strong, competitive season yet again. But everything has gone south, as they have just one win in their first 19 games of the year.

A draw on Saturday did help, but without a win the odds for LA making a run diminished just a bit. They are last in the Western Conference with just nine points in 20 games played. They still have 14 games remaining on the schedule, but are currently 17 points back of being at the back-end of the playoff hunt.

Overall, this was a great event put on by Stanford. They hosted two big-time franchises once again, and the teams showed out, providing a fun rivalry game for fans to enjoy.