CARSON, Calif. – After notching six goals and five assists in 25 regular-season appearances for the LA Galaxy II in 2016, young Homegrown standout Jose Villarreal got his 2017 off to a good start as he scored the LA Galaxy’s lone goal in a 1-1 draw with Liga MX’s Club Tijuana at the StubHub Center on Tuesday night.

The game was the Galaxy’s preseason opener, and Villarreal’s finish seven minutes into the second half off a low feed from former Ventura County Fusion midfielder Ema Boateng from the left put LA ahead. Tijuana equalized two minutes later from the penalty spot, but for a first runout of preseason Villarreal was left satisfied with the performance.

“I feel good, I think the team did a good job first and second half,” he said after the game. “Obviously there’s things we can improve on, but this is our first real test and I think we did OK. We’ve just got to build on it throughout the week and get ready for a big game against San Jose this weekend.”