Oct. 10, 2008
PALO ALTO, Calif. -
The San Diego State men's soccer team earned a 1-0 victory at Stanford Friday afternoon in Palo Alto, Calif. The Aztecs, who were playing without starters Daniel Steres and Jamel Wallace, remained unbeaten in the Pac-10 at 1-0-1 and improved to 3-5-1 overall, while the Cardinal dropped to 2-6-2 (0-2-1 Pac-10).
SDSU's goal came off the foot of sophomore Raymundo Reza (Denver, Colo.) at the 82:30 mark. On the play, Reza took a pass from classmate Michael Rocha (Pasadena, Calif.) and blasted the ball off the left post for his third goal of the season.
San Diego State came out of the gate firing on all cylinders, like its last match at UCLA on Sunday. In fact, the Aztecs outshot Stanford, 9-6, in the first half, including five consecutive attempts over a 15-minute period early in the period.
SDSU redshirt junior Matt McManus (Santa Clarita, Calif.), who was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week on Tuesday, almost got the first goal of the game in the 43rd minute but his shot from just inside the box reamed of the post.
Junior Evan Toft (Aurora, Colo.) had a game-high four shots to lead the offense, while McManus, senior co-captain Dennis Sanchez (Redmond, Wash.) and freshman Joe Corona added two attempts apiece.
Redshirt sophomore Brad Byrns (Alamo, Calif.), making just his second start of the season, had two saves in 90 minutes to record his sixth career shutout. Byrns, a 2008 all-Pac-10 honorable mention selection despite missing most of the season with an injury, is now 7-1-3 (.773) with a 0.84 goals against average over his career.
The defense, consisting of Sanchez , senior Myles Davis (Delta, British Columbia), junior M.A.C. Hermann Trophy candidate Nick Cardenas (Thornton, Colo.) and redshirt freshman Justin Davies (San Diego, Calif./Brooks School (Mass.)), stood tall in the back, limiting the Cardinal to just two shots on net.
San Diego State wraps up its four-game road trip Sunday when it takes on No. 5 California at 2:30 p.m.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Junior Nick Cardenas (Thornton, Colo.) earned Man of the Match honors after dominating SDSU's box throughout the game. Cardenas, who is on the 2008 M.A.C. Hermann Trophy Watch List, organized the back for all 90 minutes and prevented the Cardinal from many good scoring opportunities. On Stanford's best chance of the game, in the first half, Cardenas made a goal-saving header to keep the team's shutout intact.