Oct. 13, 2013
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State men's soccer team stormed back from a two-goal halftime deficit to tie Stanford, 3-3, on Sunday afternoon at SDSU Sports Deck.
Seniors Jordan Ongaro, Kevin Bick and Kody Duff each scored a goal for the Aztecs (3-6-1, 0-2-1 Pac-12), while senior Abraham Villon recorded two assists. In addition, senior goalkeeper Blake Hylen tallied three saves.
San Diego State rallied in the second half despite being forced to play short-handed for the final 36 minutes of the match when junior Wil Cannon was issued a red card in the 74th minute. In spite of the circumstances, the Aztecs out-shot Stanford 16-13, including 9-6 in the second half. They also controlled the match in the second half with their ball circulation.
"I'm so proud of this group's response today," SDSU head coach Lev Kirshner said. "We've had three heart-wrenching losses in a row, and for us to fall behind, 2-0, play with 10 players until the end of the match and force, a tie is a testament to this group's desire and determination. It was a great, well-deserved result for (the players) today."
Trailing by two early in the second half, San Diego State got on the scoreboard with Duff's goal off a rebound in the 53rd minute. The Aztecs knotted the score, 2-2, when Ongaro knocked through a goal from close range off a pass from Villon in the 69th minute.
Stanford responded to re-take the lead on Jordan Morris' header off a free kick by Ty Thompson in the 83rd minute, but SDSU came right back with a header of its own, as Bick knocked it in off Villon's free kick. Freshman August Wangberg got off the Aztecs' final shot in regulation that sailed wide in the 86th minute, while Hylen made a save on a header by Stanford's J.J. Koval in the 89th minute to send the match into overtime.
San Diego State returns to the pitch this weekend, when the Aztecs travel to the Pacific Northwest for games against Washington on Friday and Oregon State on Sunday.
Man of the Match: Junior defender Anthony Gooch (Santa Cruz, Calif.) was named Man of the Match on Thursday, as he helped stabilize the Aztecs' defense and played a big role in SDSU's ball circulation. Gooch played all 110 minutes on Sunday, and recorded a shot.