Oct. 31, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
The San Diego State men's soccer team received goals by redshirt junior Matt McManus (Santa Clarita, Calif.) and sophomore Raymundo Reza (Denver, Colo.) en route to a 2-1 victory over Stanford Friday afternoon at SDSU Sports Deck. With the win, the Aztecs improved to 4-8-2 and 2-3-3 in Pac-10 play, while the Cardinal dropped to 3-9-3 and 1-4-1 in the Pac-10.
Stanford actually had the first good scoring chance in the 19th minute when Ryan Thomas received a through pass on the left side and took a shot from a bad angle that hit the outside of the left post and bounced out of bounds.
San Diego State took advantage of its first two chances with a pair of goals 10 minutes apart. The first came at the 23:37 mark when McManus outjumped the Cardinal goalkeeper John Moore and headed in a cross from junior Evan Toft (Aurora, Colo.). It was McManus' fifth goal of the season.
Reza made it 2-0 Aztecs with a brilliant goal in the 34th minute. On the play, Reza took advantage of a Stanford misclear on Toft's corner kick when he one-timed a low blast into the left corner from just outside the 18-yard box. It was Reza's fifth goal of the year.
SDSU went into halftime with a 7-4 lead in shots and a 2-0 advantage in corner kicks.
The Cardinal had its first shot on goal six minutes into the second half when Enrique Allen headed a cross towards the net. However, San Diego State senior Jorge Rosales (Redwood City, Calif.) was there to punch the ball over the net.
Stanford then got on the scoreboard on a nifty play set up by Bobby Warshaw. Warshaw sent in a pass to Dominique Yahyavi, who beat an Aztec defender and slotted the ball into the right side from about 18 yards.
Rosales thwarted Yahyavi's next chance, however, when he stopped his semi breakaway opportunity with about three minutes left.
For the game, SDSU outshot the Cardinal, 11-8, and had a slight 5-4 edge in corner kicks.
McManus had a game-high four shots for the Aztecs, while Reza chipped in with two attempts.
Rosales (2-3-2) made two saves in 90 minutes to back the strong defensive effort by San Diego State. Moore (3-9-3) played all 90 minutes but did record a stop.
SDSU continues its four-game homestand to end the season Sunday with a match against seventh-ranked California, beginning at 1 p.m.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Sophomore Raymundo Reza earned Man of the Match honors for his stellar play all over the field. Reza, who started as a forward and saw time in the midfield and the back as well, scored his fifth goal of the season on a breathtaking shot from just outside the box for the eventual game-winner. A Denver, Colo., native, Reza recorded two shots in the game.