Sept. 25, 2005
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State recorded its sixth shutout in seven outings this season and remained undefeated while downing Duquesne, 3-0, at the SDSU Sports Deck Sunday afternoon.
Freshman Kevin Werbner opened the scoring and Kraig Chiles added a pair to pace the SDSU offense. It marked the third straight contest in which Chiles has netted a goal as he has scored five times over SDSU's last three games. His total of six goals this season leads the Aztecs in that department.
With the win, the Aztecs improve to 6-0-1 on the year, their best start since the 1991 campaign when they began with seven straight wins. The Dukes, ranked third in the Middle Atlantic Region, saw their four-match win streak halted as they fell to 5-2.
Werbner's opening goal was the result of a great individual effort by junior forward Raul Bautista. Bautista won the ball at midfield and brought it down the left side, beating defenders at three different points before crossing to the unmarked Werbner who knocked it in from six yards at the 8:00 mark.
The SDSU defense, meanwhile, was holding the potent Duke offense in check over the first 45 minutes. Duquesne had only one shot in the first half, that coming on a free kick at the top of the penalty box that flew over the goal.
The Aztecs doubled their advantage three minutes after the break when Chiles hit the first of his two goals at 47:48. The play began with Heath Creager sending a ball to the right wing where Johann Heglason hit a first-time cross to Chiles who blasted the ball in from 10 yards.
The sophomore midfielder sealed the game with his second goal at 71:38, taking a through ball from Helgason and slotting it to the lower left corner past Dukes goalie Zach Varga.
For the game, SDSU out-shot the visitors 16-8 with goalkeeper Tally Hall making a pair of saves. Hall has now gone 641:50 this season without allowing a goal from open play. The only blemish on his record is a penalty kick allowed vs. Missouri-Kansas City. Duquesne's Varga was called on to make three saves on the afternoon.
"This result shows just how strong our region is with the number-eight team in the Far West defeating the number-three squad from the Middle Atlantic Region.," noted SDSU head coach Lev Kirshner. "I'm very pleased with the total effort on our part today on both sides of the ball. We'll need that kind of effort to have success in the Pac-10."
San Diego State will now prepare for its inaugural Pac-10 Conference opener when Stanford visits the SDSU Sports Deck for a match on Friday, Sept. 30, at 4:00 p.m.
MAN OF THE MATCH
Midfielder Kraig Chiles was named SDSU's Man of the Match for his two well-taken goals in the 3-0 win over Duquesne on Sunday. The sophomore from Poway High scored SDSU's second gaol three minutes into the second half and put the game away with a score in the 72nd minute. It is the third time this season that Chiles has been honored as Man of the Match
2005 Man of the Match Honorees8/18 vs. UCSD...........Kraig Chiles, MF8/27 vs. Alumni.........Nick Collins, MF8/30 vs. NJIT...........Luis Trejo, GK9/2 vs. Rutgers........Heath Creager, F9/3 vs. St. John's.....Tally Hall, GK9/10 vs. UC Riverside...Johann Helgason, MF9/15 vs. Pt. Loma.......Raul Bautista, F9/18 vs. UMKC...........Kraig Chiles, MF9/22 vs. Alabama A&M....Matt Couch, D9/25 vs. Duquesne.......Kraig Chiles, MF