Sept. 23, 2003
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State men's soccer will face Hofstra (3-3-0) on Friday at 4 p.m. and Albany (3-2-1) on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Sports Deck with both games marking the first matchup between the schools. The Aztecs are 4-1-1 on the year, matching their win total from a year ago. It is the best start for SDSU since 1992, when they had the identical record. The Aztecs will try and remain perfect at home as they are 3-0 on the year. Both schools are from New York will also play USD over the weekend, with Albany playing the Toreros on Friday.
Recapping The Weekend's Matches
*San Diego State won the UNLV Tournament Championship after posting a 1-0-1 record in Las Vegas. SDSU tied Bowling Green 1-1 on Friday night, and earned a 2-1 double overtime victory over previously undefeated Drake on Sunday.
*Freshman Dione Scott scored his third goal of the season against Bowling Green just 43 seconds into the second half to tie the score at one and the defenses controlled the rest of the game. SDSU dominated the action as they held a 25-14 shot advantage, but could not tally the game-winner.
*The Aztecs handed Drake their first loss when Blake Perry scored with under three minutes left in double overtime. Heath Creager got the Aztecs on the board with a score 45 seconds after halftime. Creager, Kevin Sapanli, and goalkeeper Colin Hanke all earned assists in the game.
Super Soph
* Sophomore transfer Heath Creager has made a big impact in his first six games as an Aztec as he leads the squad with three goals and seven points. Creager scored a goal and added an assist in the 2-1 win over Drake. Heath scored the first goal of the game just 45 seconds into the second period when he got a breakaway opportunity off a touch from Kevin Sapanli. Creager also tallied the assist on the game-winning goal in double overtime. Creager's first two goals came in SDSU's 2-0 victory over Long Island at the SDSU Classic. Creager was named to the SDSU All-Tournament team for his outstanding play. Creager was the 2001 Arizona high school player of the year and joined SDSU after two seasons at Indiana, with one being a redshirt year.
Looking Ahead: Rutgers Classic
* The Aztecs will travel across the country to face two of the premier soccer programs in the country next weekend when they play No. 10 Rutgers and No. 6 St. John's in the Rutgers Classic. It will be a homecoming for head coach Lev Kirshner who is an alumnus of Rutgers, and also coached at the school. Rutgers is 5-1 on the year and will play Virginia Tech this week, while St. John's is 5-2 and has four more games before their matchup.
Cardiac Kids
*In the 2003 season, the Aztecs have had a flair for the dramatic. SDSU has scored two golden goals already this season, including one with less than three minutes left in the second overtime.
*SDSU scored with only seven seconds remaining to force overtime in their 2-1 victory over Oregon State.
*The Aztecs scored twice with under ten minutes left to earn a 2-1 come from behind win over UC-Riverside, their second come from behind win of the season.
*SDSU has yet to score in the first half this season but have scored two goals in the first minute of the second half.
Aztecs In The Polls
* SDSU regained its position in the NSCAA/adidas regional poll. They are the only MPSF member in the Top 10.
NSCAA/adidas Far West Region Top 10 (Sept. 15)
Rk School W-L-T
1 UCLA 4-1-0
2 Santa Clara 4-0-2
3 UC Santa Barbara 4-0-1
4 Cal State Northridge 3-0-1
5 Washington 2-0-1
6 Loyola Marymount 3-2-1
7 California 2-3-1
8 Oregon State 4-2-0
9 San Diego State 3-1-0
10 Stanford 1-3-0