By Dan Minkoff
March 21, 2026
THE RESULT: Long Beach FC earned its first win of the UPSL Spring season with a 2–0 shutout over Santa Ana Winds FC in the SoCal North conference on Saturday night at Lake Forest Sports Park.
- Long Beach improved to 1‑1‑1 (4 points).
- Santa Ana fell to 0-2-1 (2 points).
THE KEY: Connor Somers, making his season debut off the bench, changed the tempo after coming on in the 60th minute, creating multiple dangerous chances before sealing the match with a 77th-minute goal. Somers played on the team two years ago and recovered from a serious knee injury since he last wore the celestial blue and sunglow yellow.
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Somers was the Legends Sports Bar "Legend of the Match." Watch his postgame interview here.
QUATABLE: “It feels great,” Somers said. “Great to get the dub and be able to secure the win after not being on the team for two years. Get the season rolling.”
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Lucas Gonzalez, LBFC’s leading scorer from its last UPSL season, opened the scoring early, finishing a short-corner routine in the 6th minute for his first goal of the season.
- Long Beach goalkeeper Paul Jing, who wasn’t tested very much, made a key save in the 61st minute on a looping header that he tipped over the crossbar. Although Long Beach was dominating, it was still clinging to a 1-0 lead at that point.
BY THE NUMBERS:
- Possession: LBFC 57%, Santa Ana 42%
- Shots: LBFC 14, Santa Ana 8
- Fouls: LBFC 12, Santa Ana 7
- Corners: LBFC 6, Santa Ana 1
- Passes: LBFC 356, Santa Ana 242
- Passing percentage: LBFC 70%, Santa Ana 62%
- Yellow cards: LBFC 1, Santa Ana 0
THE TAKEAWAY: Long Beach fielded its strongest lineup of the season and with contributions across the lineup, Long Beach FC delivered its most complete performance of the season — and left Lake Forest with three points.
UPCOMING MATCHES:
- Sunday, March 29 @ 5:30 p.m.: vs SoCal United at St. Anthony High School Athletic Complex (4832 Clark Ave, Long Beach, CA 90808)
- Saturday, April 4 @ 8 p.m.: at Rose City FC at Arcadia City Hall Stadium (240 W Huntington Dr, Arcadia, CA 91007)
TICKETS: Purchase a Spring 2026 Shore Pass for all home games or get individual adult and youth game tickets here.
https://longbeachfootballclub.com