Oct. 23, 2001
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Welcome Back
The San Diego State men's soccer team returns to San Diego this week for a pair of Mountain Pacific Sports Federation matches. The Aztecs face UNLV on Friday at 4 p.m. and New Mexico on Sunday at 2 p.m. The Aztecs (6-6-2, 2-1-1 MPSF) come off a weekend that saw them tie San Jose State, 1-1, and shutout Fresno State, 2-0. SDSU's 2-1-1 mark in league puts them in second place in the standings, trailing Air Force (12-2, 4-0 MPSF).
Recapping The Weekend
The Aztecs posted their second tie of the season Friday versus San Jose State. Senior Enrique Tovar knotted the score when he converted a penalty kick at the 83:28 mark. Competition was later suspended by officials leaving things tied at a goal apiece.
SDSU recorded its fourth shutout of year and the second in conference play in Sunday's 2-0 win over Fresno State. The victory moved the team to .500 for the third time this season. Enrique Tovar assisted on both goals, the first was scored by freshman Anthony Zoric and the second by sophomore Kevin Sapanli.
At .500, Again
The Aztecs have been at the .500 mark three time thus far this season. The last time the program posted an even mark at least 14 matches into a campaign was in 1997 when it was 6-6-3 . The last time SDSU has been over .500 was during the 1998 season when it was 5-4-1. That year SDSU moved to at least a game over .500 on five occasions.
Scoring Turnaround
Another sign of the turnaround the Aztec program is making this season comes in terms of scoring. SDSU scored a total of 25 goals during the 2000 campaign compared to the 26 the team has scored thus far this season.
The Initial Strike
Thirteen of the the Aztecs 26 goals this season have come in the first half. SDSU has been the first team to score eight times this season and posts a 7-1 mark when doing so.
Scoring Punch
Junior forward Enrique Tovar is the team's lead scorer this season. His goal and two assists this past weekend give him five goals and six assists (16 points) on the year. Tovar is the first Aztec to receive the league's player of the week honor this season doing so on Oct. 1. The occasion also marks the first time Tovar has earned the weekly award. Earlier this season, he scored the fastest goal in program history, finding the net just 15 seconds into the match versus UC Santa Barbara on Sept. 6. Tovar is also 3-for-3 in penalty kick situations this season.
Another Scoring Punch
Also setting the tone of the Aztec offense this season has been a local product, sophomore midfielder Kevin Sapanli. Sapanli scored his sixth goal of the season in the Fresno State match, coupled with his one assist he is second on the team in scoring with 13 points.
Netminders
The Aztecs have allowed just two goals in their last three matches and have not yeilded two goals in seven consecutive games. A large part of that success has come by way of senior goalkeeper Tim Edwards. Edwards is responsible for both of the team's conference shutouts and had a hand in the team's blankings of Christian Heritage on Sept. 19 and Oct. 4, sharing the shutout with junior keeper Brian Barnes. Through nine matches played, Edwards has allowed seven goals and recorded 27 saves. He is 3-1-2 and boasts a 0.92 goals-against average this year.
The New Guys
SDSU has gotten plenty of help from its incoming class thus far this season and has started anywhere from four to six newcomers throughout the year. Players prominent in the starting lineup have been senior Aaron Frimkess, junior Mauricio Soler and freshmen Drew Picone, Paul Szefler, Patrick Strait and Eric Wohl. Eight of this year's new faces have scored at least a point and account for 33 of the Aztecs' 79 points this season (nine goals, 15 assists).
Aztec Coaching Staff
SDSU is led by second-year head coach Lev Kirshner. Kirshner is assisted by Matt Hall, Dave Siracus and Rene Miramontes.
Scouting UNLV
UNLV (7-6, 2-2 MPSF) come off a pair of conference losses this past weekend, 3-2 at Denver and 5-0 at Air Force. The team's lead scorer is sophomore Alex Hernandez with 7 goals (14 points) on the year. SDSU owns a 14-9-3 series record with the Rebels and won the last meeting between the two, a 1-0 decision last season in San Diego. UNLV is led by head coach Barry Barto, in his 20th season with the program.
Scouting New Mexico
New Mexico (3-8-2, 0-3-1 MPSF) comes to San Diego in search of its first conference win and comes off losses to Air Force and Denver this past weekend. The Aztecs are 2-8-1 all-time versus the Lobos and posted at 2-1 loss against them last season in Albuquerque. UNM is led by 15th-year head coach Klaus Weber.
Things To Come
SDSU takes a one-match break from league play next week, competing at CSU Fullerton on Halloween. The team concludes its conference slate on Nov. 4 at CSU Sacramento.