Sept. 8, 2011
SAN DIEGO -
Complete Release in PDF Format
Aztec Men's Soccer Plays Host to Manhattan, No. 21 Penn at Fourth Annual Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Tournament
The San Diego State men's soccer team plays host to the fourth annual Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Tournament this weekend. the Aztecs (1-1-1) will meet Manhattan at 4 p.m. PT Friday, before playing 21st-ranked Univ. of Penn at noon Sunday. San Diego is also in the four-team tournament.
The Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Tournament Info
This weekend will be the fourth edition of the Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Soccer Tournament. The host San Diego State is making its fourth consecutive appearance in the tourney, while USD (2008-09) is making its third appearance and Penn (2009) its second. Manhattan will be in its first Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Tournament.
Michigan won the inaugural tournament in 2008, while the Aztecs were co-champions (with Penn) in 2009 with a 1-0-1 record. Even though SDSU tied UC Irvine with a perfect 2-0 record a year ago, the Anteaters claimed the title due to goal differential.
San Diego State senior captain Daniel Steres (Calabasas, Calif.) was the Defensive Most Valuable Player as a freshman (2008) and an all-tournament selection in 2009. Other current Aztecs who have been named to the all-tournament team in the past include redshirt senior Justin Davies (San Diego/Brooks School (Mass.)) (2010) and sophomore Tyrone Martin (Indianapolis, Ind.) (2010).
Examining the Aztecs
San Diego State will look to bounce back after suffering its first loss of the season, a 2-1 loss at USD on Sunday night before 2,967 fans. Stephen Posa scored off a scramble in front of the goal in the 89th minute to give San Diego (1-2-0) its first win of the season. The Aztecs, who lead the all-time series between the two schools, 11-6-2, got on the scoreboard first in the ninth minute when junior Abraham Villon (Garden Grove, Calif.) sent a pass into the box to a breaking redshirt sophomore John Pegg (Edmonton, Alberta). Pegg touched it once and blasted it into the right corner for his first goal as an Aztec.
San Diego tied it in the 21st minute as Daniel Meade's 30-yard shot from the center beat SDSU redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Blake Hylen (San Diego/Torrey Pines HS) into the upper-right part of the goal.
Posa's diving header hit the crossbar in the 73rd minute, then scored on the scramble with only 1:43 left in regulation.
USD owned a slight 9-6 advantage in shots, while each team had two corner kicks.
Sophomore Miles Byass (Highland, Calif.) and Pegg led the Aztecs with two shots apiece, while junior Jose Altamirano (San Diego/Southwest HS) and sophomore Kody Duff (Roseville, Calif.) had the other two attempts.
Hylen played all 90 minutes in net and made two saves.
The loss came two days after SDSU played to a double-overtime, 2-2 draw, despite outshooting visiting Long Island, 46-7. San Diego State put 16 shots on net and another one each off the crossbar and left post.
Freshman Tyler Smith (Huntington Beach, Calif.) scored both goals for the Aztecs off corner kicks from Byass and Altamirano.
SDSU players who had other very good chances on the game included Altamirano, redshirt sophomore Jordan Ongaro (Edmonton, Alberta), junior Ata Ozbay (Barrington, Ill.), Smith and Villon.
Byass had nine shots (three on net) to pace the Aztec offense, while Ozbay fired seven attempts (three on net). Sophomore Michael Channell (Boca Raton, Fla.), Pegg, Smith, Steres and Villon chipped in with four shots apiece. Redshirt senior captain Pedro Adan (San Diego/Preuss HS), Altamirano and Ongaro added three attempts.
Hylen made two stops in net over 110 minutes.
Josh Maley and Elliot Kane scored for LIU.
Scouting the Jaspers
Manhattan takes an 0-2-0 record into the Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Tournament. Last weekend, the Jaspers lost, 2-0, at Villanova on Friday (Aug. 26) and 1-0 at Army on Monday (Aug. 29).
Lucas Pilar da Silva has five of the team's 20 shots on the season, including two on net. Trevor Chiduku and Carlo Giachino have two attempts apiece. George Ellis (0-0-0, 0.00 GAA, 7 SVS, 90:00) and Christopher Lands (0-2-0, 2.72 GAA, 7 SVS, 99:24) have split time in net.
Friday will be the first-ever meeting between Manhattan and San Diego State.
A Glance at the Quakers
Univ. of Pennsylvania takes a perfect 2-0 record into Friday's match at USD after downing La Salle, 2-0, and Saint Joseph's, 5-1. The Quakers are ranked as high as No. 21 by Top Drawer Soccer, and are also 30th in College Soccer News top-30 poll and receiving votes by NSCAA and Soccer Times.
Duke Lacroix leads the squad with two goals, while Christian Barreiro (1 goal, 2 assists) equals Lacroix for the team's point leader (4 points). Four others have scored a goal for Penn, including Stephen Baker, who leads the squad with 13 shot attempts. Max Kurtzman has played all 180 minutes in net and is 2-0-0 with a 0.50 goals against average. He has 10 saves and one shutout.
The Quakers lead the all-time series with the Aztecs, 1-0-1. The two teams tied, 2-2, in two overtimes in the last meeting in 2009, which was also played on Sept. 11. In that game, current players Pedro Adan (San Diego/Preuss HS) and Morgan Sacco (Greeley, Colo.) each assisted on the team's second goal. Other current Aztecs who logged playing time included Daniel Steres (Calabasas, Calif.), Jose Altamirano (San Diego/Southwest HS), Gemechu Abraham (Beaverton, Ore.), Justin Davies (San Diego/Brooks School (Mass.)) and Chance Marden (Fremont, Calif.).
At the Helm
Lev Kirshner is in his 12th year as head coach at San Diego State and 15th season overall. Kirshner, just one of three coaches in the 43-year history of the program, has brought SDSU back to the national spotlight with two trips to the NCAA tournament since he helped orchestrate the program's move to the Pac-10 (now Pac-12) in 2005.
Since the men's soccer team earned its full allotment of scholarships (2005), the Aztecs have gone 49-40-26 (.539), including a 20-23-17 (.475) mark in the competitive Pac-12.
Over his 11 seasons, Kirshner has coached two All-America selections, three Academic All-America picks, 10 professional players, eight all-Far West selections and 57 all-conference picks.
Captaining the Aztecs
Redshirt senior Pedro Adan (San Diego/Preuss HS) and senior Daniel Steres (Calabasas, Calif.) joined the long list of captains in the storied program when they were announced to the team in the spring.
Now in his fifth season (he redshirted 2007), Adan has played in 49 games, earning starts in 37 of the them. He has tallied five points on a goal and three assists, while controlling possession in the midfield. Last year, Adan played a career-high 1,055 minutes and also set a career best in shots (16) and tied a career high in shots on goal (three).
Steres, meanwhile, became the first two-time captain since Raul Bautista captained the squad in 2005 and 2006 (both NCAA tournament teams). Steres is a two-time all-Pac-10 honoree, including a second-team selection last year as a junior. He has started 52 times over his 56 appearances, registering 21 points on eight goals and five assists. Last year, Steres started all 18 games he appeared in, and had 10 points on four goals and two assists, despite predominately playing in the back.
Quick Notes
San Diego State has now won 10 consecutive matches when leading at the half ... The Aztecs tied Long Island, 2-2, on Friday, snapping a 10-game winning streak when scoring at least two goals ... SDSU still hasn't lost a game when scoring two goals since Sept. 5, 2008 ... Since then, a span of 24 matches, San Diego State has gone 16-0-8 ... Since the Aztecs joined the Pac-12 (formerly the Pac-10) in 2005, SDSU has gone 32-2-8 when scoring at least two times ... Under Lev Kirshner, now in his 12th season, San Diego State is 59-9-10 when scoring at least twice in a match ... The Aztecs are outshooting the opposition, 72-25, through three games, including a 29-12 advantage on net ... The 24.00 shots per game are the most in the Pac-10 (Washington is second at 19.00) ... SDSU is tied with the Huskies for first in the conference with 1.67 goals per game ... It should be noted, however, that two of Washington's goals were penalty kicks ... San Diego State leads the Pac-12 in points per game (5.33) and assists per game (2.00) ... The Aztecs' 26 corner kicks also lead the Pac-12 (Washington is second at 25) ... SDSU is outcornering their opponents by a 26-10 margin ... Sophomore Miles Byass (Highland, Calif.) ranks among the league leaders in assists per game (1st, 0.67), points per game (T-2nd, 1.33), shots per game (3rd, 4.67) and goals per game (5th, 0.33) ... Freshman Tyler Smith (Huntington Beach, Calif.), meanwhile, is tied for second in points per game (1.33) and goals per game (0.67) ... Others: Sophomore Sean Zaher (Las Vegas, Nev.) is tied for third in assists per game (0.50), junior Ata Ozbay (Barrington, Ill./Univ. of Wisconsin) is tied for fourth in shots per game (3.33), redshirt sophomore Jordan Ongaro (Edmonton, Alberta) is tied for fourth in assists per game (0.33), and tied for fifth in points per game (1.00) and goals per game (0.33), redshirt sophomore John Pegg (Edmonton, Alberta) is tied for fifth in goals per game (0.33), and juniors Jose Altamirano (San Diego/Southwest HS) and Abraham Villon (Garden Grove, Calif./Arizona Western College) are tied for fourth in assists per game (0.33) ... In the net, redshirt sophomore Blake Hylen (San Diego/Torrey Pines HS) is fourth in goals against average (1.55), fifth in saves per game (2.33) and tied for fifth in save percentage (.583).
Miles Above the Rest
Sophomore Miles Byass (Highland, Calif.) is certainly making his case of being mentioned among the top strikers in the country. After being held scoreless his first nine appearances of his career last year, Byass has been on a tear ever since. Byass has six goals over his last eight games, including two game-winners. Additionally, he has at least one point in six of the eight matches.
What may even be more impressive for the 2010 honorable-mention all-Pac-10 selection is ability to score despite not playing that many minutes. Over the last eight matches, Byass' six goals have come over 495 minutes. That means he is averaging 1.09 goals per 90-minute regulation match.
This year, Byass has one goal and two assists in 205 minutes. Among the Pac-12 leaders, Byass is tied for first in assists per game (0.67), tied for second in points per game (1.33), third in shots per game (4.67) and fifth in goals per game (0.33).
Jose Altamirano Ranked 67th in Top Drawer Soccer Preseason Top 100
San Diego State junior Jose Altamirano (San Diego/Southwest HS) has been named to the Top Drawer Soccer's preseason Men's National Top-100 list, the website announced on Aug. 22 The midfielder is ranked 67th on the initial list and only three players in the Pac-12 Conference have a better ranking.
Last season, Altamirano had 11 points on one goal and nine assists en route to being named a second-team all-Pac-10 selection. The nine assists led the Aztecs and ranked third in the league (second in assists per game (0.47)). One of five SDSU players to start all 19 games in 2010, Altamirano logged 1,549 minutes (81:32 per game), the most of all midfielders and forwards. A U.S. Under-20 National Team member and 2009 honorable mention all-Pac-10 pick, Altamirano also garnered first-team Pac-10 All-Academic Team honors last year.
This year, Altamirano has one assist and six shots (two on net) over 220 minutes, while starting all three games.
In all, 10 players from the Pac-12 were named to the preseason list.
SDSU Picked Fourth in Pac-12 Poll
The San Diego State men's soccer team has been picked to finish fourth in the 2011 Pac-12 preseason poll, the league announced on Aug. 16.
The Aztecs garnered 13 points, three behind third-place Washington (16). UCLA has been selected to win the regular season title with 25 points, including five first-place votes, while California was picked second (21) with the other first-place vote. Stanford's 10 points were the fifth most in the poll and Oregon State rounded out the teams with five points.
San Diego State is scheduled to play 19 matches in 2011, highlighted by home contests against 2010 NCAA semifinalist Michigan (Oct. 22), 2010 NCAA second round participant Penn (Sept. 11) and Pac-10 foes California (Oct. 2) and UCLA (Nov. 12), which both advanced to the 2010 NCAA quarterfinals.
The Aztecs return eight starters and 11 letterwinners from the 2010 team that went 10-7-2, the program's first 10-win team since 1994 (10-9-0).
SDSU's 2011 Recruiting Class Ranked No. 35 Nationally by College Soccer News
San Diego State's 2011 men's soccer recruiting class has received a No. 35 national ranking from College Soccer News. It is the sixth time in the last seven seasons that they've been ranked in the top 40.
The 2011 recruiting class, consisting of eight players, includes two under-18 U.S. National Team members, a high school All-American, a youth All-American, three adidas ESP participants, a state player of the year as well as multiple starters on regional ODP teams.
The Aztecs are one of four Pac-10 squads to receive top-40 rankings. Stanford is rated No. 10, while Bay Area-rival California was ranked 13th and UCLA 21st. Perennial powerhouse UCLA picked up the top rated class, with California (No. 15) and Stanford (No. 31) also included. The Aztecs' No. 35 class is ahead of perennial power Creighton (No. 37) and Big West's UC Irvine (No. 39).
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