Oct. 23, 2014
SAN DIEGO - What appeared to be a great opportunity for the San Diego State Aztec men's soccer team to earn its second victory in its last three matches changed quickly on Thursday afternoon, as Oregon State scored two goals in less than a minute to defeat the Aztecs, 2-0, at Paul Lorenz Field.
SDSU (7-8, 1-5 Pac-12) had a chance to jump ahead in the 50th minute when freshman Jeff Rhodes found himself in good position near the net off an Aztec free kick, but was unable to get a foot on it. Instead, Oregon State (9-5-1, 2-3-1) took the lead later in the second half on consecutive goals by Will Seymore and Khiry Shelton for a commanding 2-0 advantage.
To make matters worse for San Diego State, freshman forward Donald Benamna was issued a red card in the 67th minute, forcing the Aztecs to play from behind and a man down the rest of the way.
The loss was only SDSU's second to OSU in its last nine meeting against the Beavers, and snapped a four-match winning streak against Oregon State. It's also just San Diego State's second loss this season by more than one goal, as Oregon State earned its first victory in its last three matches.
Senior Pablo Vasquez and freshman David Olsen each recorded a team-high two shots, while redshirt freshman goalkeeper Adam Allmaras tallied three saves, each of which came in the first half. In addition, senior defender and team captain Evyn Hewett and redshirt sophomore defender Travis Nicklaw each played all 90 minutes on the backline. Hewett has still played every minute of every match this season for the Aztecs, and has appeared in 63-consecutive matches.
San Diego State continues its road trip through the Pacific Northwest this weekend, as the Aztecs take on No. 4 Washington on Sunday, beginning at 3 p.m. PT. The match will be shown live on Pac-12 Networks.
Man of the Match: Freshman Sergio Enriquez (San Diego, Calif./Helix HS) was named Man of the Match on Thursday, as he played 82 minutes on the back line. Enriquez has now played in each of SDSU's last five matches, while starting the last four contests. He was a standout at Helix High under former Aztec Jeff Kepper, as he was named the Highlanders' team MVP and a first-team all-Grossmont Valley selection.