Soccer Game Preview: Murrieta Mesa vs. Temecula Valley

The Murrieta Mesa Rams are taking a road trip to square off against the Temecula Valley Golden Bears at 7:15 p.m. on Friday. Murrieta Mesa's last four games have been decided by no more than a goal, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.

Temecula Valley will have to contend with a Murrieta Mesa team hungry for a win, something the squad hasn't seen since the eighth. Murrieta Mesa fell just short of Murrieta Valley by a score of 3-2 on Wednesday. That's two games in a row now that the Rams have lost by just one goal.

Meanwhile, Temecula Valley earned a 3-1 victory over Chaparral on Wednesday. Given the Golden Bears' advantage in MaxPreps' California soccer rankings (they are ranked 386th, while the Pumas are ranked 925th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Temecula Valley's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-7-1. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they scored ten goals over those three matches. As for Murrieta Mesa, their loss dropped their record down to 3-9-3.

Murrieta Mesa suffered a grim 4-1 defeat to Temecula Valley in their previous matchup two weeks ago. Can Murrieta Mesa avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.