As the second half of the match started, Sacramento State men’s soccer was down 2-0 against San Jose State. Looking for a spark in the 51st minute, sophomore forward Sean Battistessa ran in to tackle a loose ball off a throw-in and subsequently took down the opposing player.
From the corner of the pitch, a San Jose State forward ran into Battistessa, looking for retribution on the 6-foot-3 sophomore.
Junior forward Donovan Sessoms came into the fray to protect Battistessa. Sessoms charged in, grabbing the San Jose State player by the jersey and spinning him around. Then a full-blown scrum ensued.
Multiple players from both teams became increasingly hostile, shoving and pulling on each other while referees and nearby teammates came in to break up the confrontation.
This marked the turning point in the game.
From this incident Battistessa was issued his first yellow card, while Sessoms was issued his second and was kicked out of the game. Only one player from the Spartans was issued a yellow card from the scuffle.
Full Scrum from today’s game: pic.twitter.com/Che0BeBP55
— Tamer Bohatch (@TamerBohatch) September 8, 2025
Sac State seemed to come alive after the incident.
“When we went down to 10 men, I was really proud of my guys. I thought we worked hard. They didn’t have a lot of clear chances, even though there was an extra man,” head coach Michael Linenberger said. “I thought we’d defended well, worked hard and were dangerous on the counter a couple of times.”
Despite the game’s chippy nature, Sac State overcame the loss of a player, recording five shots in the second half. In spite of all the additional offensive pressure, the Hornets’ five shots in the second half never got in the goal.
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“When we got into dangerous situations today, most of the time we didn’t get shots off, and if we did, we didn’t hit the target,” Linenberger said. “We didn’t make their goalkeeper make saves. I thought that was the biggest difference in the game today.”
Battistessa shared similar feelings of seeing bright spots but not being able to capitalize.
“I think there’s good moments right now,” Battistessa said. “We have to kind of put the finishing touches on things.”
Battling through this adversity was junior goalkeeper Lucas Bost. In the 39th minute, he challenged a player outside the six-yard box. With the goal looking inevitable, Bost came back and challenged the forward, sliding back and then throwing his hands in the air to make the save.
“That was a fun one. I totally misread the ball, which is why I got caught running back towards my own goal,” Bost said. “But I got to stay with the play.”
Here is that “Circus” Style Save from Lucas Bost. pic.twitter.com/Qcln7Wtpwq
— Tamer Bohatch (@TamerBohatch) September 8, 2025
Bost praised the defense’s cooperation with a man down for the final 39 minutes of the game, only forcing him to make two saves in the second half.
“It is great when someone’s teeing up a shot, and they’re willing to put their body in front of it,” Bost said. “It’s kind of the mutual respect we have for one another, just trying to put the body on the line, trying to make those stops.”
The match had a total of 29 fouls, resulting in eight cards. San Jose State committed 16 of the fouls, while Sac State committed 13. From these fouls, six Sac State players were issued yellow cards, with Sessoms being issued two.
Despite the effort to make a comeback, the Hornets were unable to overcome the man disadvantage and the constant pressure from the Spartans.
Even with an opening season record of 0-5-1, the Hornets are optimistic about what is to come.
“It seems like we’re finally coming around to where we need to be,” Bost said. “Hopefully, by conference time, we are ready and maybe even get to the NCAA playoffs.”
Sac State will continue their season with a game on the road against the University of the Pacific, on Sept. 11.
