Nov. 16, 2013
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State men's soccer team left it all on the field on Saturday night, but it wasn't quite enough, as the Aztecs fell to No. 2 UCLA, 3-0, on senior night at SDSU Sports Deck.
San Diego State out-shot UCLA, 18-16, including a 10-8 edge in the second half, as the Aztecs kept the pressure on throughout the match. Senior midfielders Kevin Bick and Jordan Ongaro led SDSU with four shots apiece, while senior goalkeeper Blake Hylen tallied three saves in his first action since Oct. 25.
The Aztecs finish the regular season with a 292-260 edge in shots attempted against their opponents this season, along with a 102-92 advantage in corner kicks. In all, SDSU (6-11-2, 2-6-2 Pac-12) was outscored by just one goal this season, 34-33, despite playing eight matches against ranked foes, and five matches against teams ranked in the top five in the nation.
UCLA broke the scoreless tie in the 28th minute, as Gage Zerboni knocked in a header off a cross from Jordan Vale, and the Bruins added another goal in the first half when Leo Stolz dribbled down the right side and put through a diagonal shot into the bottom-left corner of the net to push the lead to 2-0.
Stolz helped UCLA pad its lead with a diagonal shot from the right side off a rebound in the 58th minute, as the Bruins' 3-0 advantage stood the rest of the way.
San Diego State had several good scoring opportunities on Saturday, but weren't able to break through against UCLA goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr., who finished the night with seven saves. Senior Kody Duff blasted a shot in the 24th minute that Edwards made a diving save on, and senior Abraham Villon's shot off the rebound sailed high.
Only moments after UCLA scored its first goal, Ongaro's header was saved by Edwards, and Ongaro was denied again on a shot attempt in the 40th minute. In the 42nd minute, Bick had a shot saved by Edwards, as the Bruins went into halftime with a two-goal lead.
It was more of the same in the second half, with Edwards stopping shots by senior Casey Meuser in the 68th minute and freshman August Wangberg in the 69th minute. The Aztecs finished with a total of seven shots on target.
Ongaro finishes the regular season leading San Diego State with 21 points, including a team-high 10 goals. Villon is second with 19 points on six goals and seven assists, while Duff is third on the squad with 10 points on four goals and two assists. After making the start on Saturday, Meuser started every game in his four-year career in an Aztecs' uniform.
Man of the Match: The 2013 San Diego State men's soccer senior class was named Man of the Match on Saturday. The 11 student-athletes helped the Aztecs win several big games over the past five seasons, including back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2010 and 2011, a feat accomplished for the first time in 20 years. The senior class also beat or tied a top-25 team in each of their seasons at Montezuma Road, and the group made a total of 133 starts this season.