Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
Nov. 4, 2003
SAN DIEGO - SDSU men's soccer will finish the 2003 regular season with three games in five days as they play Loyola Marymount (10-6-1) on Wed., make-up the postponed game against Air Force (8-7-1) on Friday at LMU, and end with New Mexico (6-8-3) on Sunday at the Sports Deck. The Aztecs enter the final week of the season with a 7-4-3 overall record and are 1-1-2 in the MPSF. SDSU can finish in second place and earn a first round bye in the MPSF tournament with wins over their two remaining conference foes.
* The Aztecs interrupt MPSF play for a battle with West Coast Conference rival Loyola Marymount on Wednesday, Nov. 5. The rivarly heated up last year as the Aztecs handed No. 7 LMU their first loss of the season, 3-2 in overtime, at the Sports Deck. Over the last four meetings, LMU holds a 2-1-1 record with three of the matches heading into extra time, and none decided by more than a goal. SDSU leads the overall series by a 12-4-1 margin.
* Air Force and SDSU will try and remake their game on Friday in Los Angeles. The game was postponed Nov. 14 due to the fires in the San Diego area. Air Force enters the game with the highest scoring offense in the MPSF at 2.29 goals per game.
* A dangerous New Mexico team comes to the Sports Deck for the regular season finale on Sunday. UNM is the defending MPSF Champion and have won three straight games, including a win over MPSF-leading San Jose State. Six of the eight losses by the Lobos this season have come to ranked opponents. The Aztecs have struggled against New Mexico in the past as they are 3-9-1 against the Lobos, the second worst winning percentage against any opponent with at least 10 games in the all-time series. SDSU did break an eight game losing skid to UNM with a 2-1 victory in 2001, but lost 2-1 last season in Albuquerque.
Odds & Ends
* Kenny Fechner's assist against SJSU gives him eight on the season, which is the most for an Aztec since Aaron Susi tallied 10 in 1995.
* Heath Creager's score at San Jose State was his sixth of the season. Creager leads the Aztecs in both goals and points (14).
* Kevin Sapanli has tallied at least a point in three of the Aztecs' last four games, and has recorded seven points over the four-game span.
* Senior goalkeeper Colin Hanke recorded eight saves last week to move into eighth place on SDSU's single season saves list with 71. Hanke needs 10 saves to pass his goalkeeper coach, Matt Hall, who is in sixth place on the list.
Recapping The Weekend's Matches
* San Jose State handed SDSU its first conference loss, 2-1, on Sunday. The Aztecs scored first as they netted their goal at the 36:03 mark when Fechner gave a corner kick to Sapanli who crossed it for the score by Creager. The Spartans turned up the intensity in the second half as they outshot SDSU 6-3 and netted two goals for the win. The two teams recorded 11 shots apiece with SDSU holding a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal in a very evenly contested matchup.
* SDSU earned a 1-1 tie at Sacramento State on Friday in MPSF action. Sacramento State scored 13 minutes into the game and SDSU answered with the tying goal at the 27:07 mark, but the defenses held strong in the second half and two overtime periods. Sapanli scored the Aztecs' lone goal off an assist from Creager. SDSU dominated the action, outshooting the Hornets 19-11 but could not register the game winner.
Looking Ahead: MPSF Tournament
* Entering the final week of the season, tournament positioning is still up in the air. With wins in the final two conference games, the Aztecs would finish in second place and earn a first round bye in the MPSF tournament. SDSU can clinch a playoff berth with at least a tie against Air Force. If the Aztecs fall to Air Force, SDSU can clinch a berth with a win against UNM or a loss by Denver against Air Force.
NSCAA/adidas Far West Region Top 10
Rk School W-L-T
1 UCLA 15-1-0
2 Santa Clara 12-2-3
3 Oregon State 12-4-0
4 UC Santa Barbara 12-3-1
5 Washington 10-3-2
6 San Diego 12-3-2
7 Cal State Northridge 10-3-2
8 Loyola Marymount 10-6-1
9 San Jose State 10-4-2
10 Portland 8-8-0