Sept. 13, 2015
IRVINE, Calif. - In San Diego State men's soccer's 48-year history, the team has never produced a weekend with two 0-0 contests. After a 0-0 tie with SIUE on Friday, the Aztecs made history with a 0-0 match at UC Irvine on Sunday. San Diego State finished the Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Tournament 0-0-2.
After the score, San Diego State, which last produced 220 minutes of 0-0 play in 2005, moves to 3-0-2 on the season. Keeper Adam Allmaras and the Aztecs now boast a 344:47 shutout streak. San Diego State extends its five-match unbeaten streak to open the 2015 campaign, its longest since that 2005 season.
The Aztecs' first chance to break through came in the 21st minute. Casey Phillips sent a hard cross to Jeroen Meefout, which he headed towards the goal from six yards out, but the ball one-hopped to the keeper, Michael Breslin, for the stop.
A red card on UC Irvine's Andy Mendoza in the 61st minute forced UC Irvine to play a man down for the remainder of the match.
San Diego State attempted the header again at 81:16 for an opportunity to take the lead. After a throw-in, Kyle Adams's header sailed directly to Breslin.
A pair of shots by Thom Van den Berg and Rene Reyes in the last minute of regulation sailed away high and wide of the net, forcing the match into extra time.
The Scarlet and Black out-shot the Anteaters, 4-1, in the two overtime periods, with Travis Nicklaw, appearing in his first match this season, putting the only shot on goal recorded by both teams in either overtime period in the 105-minute mark.
San Diego State's defense continued its staunch play to open the season, limiting the Anteaters to just one shot on goal. The Aztecs put six shots on target, out-shooting UC Irvine 13-8 in the match. UC Irvine took five corners to San Diego State's four, but was called offsides six times, while the Aztecs were not called offsides during the match.
In goal, Allmaras saw his record turn to 2-0-2 with his third clean sheet in as many matches, while Breslin's record became 1-2-2 following the match.
The Aztecs return to SDSU Sports Deck on Fri., Sept. 18 with a 7 p.m. match against UT-Rio Grande Valley.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Kyle Adams is the Aztecs' Man of the Match after playing all 110 minutes of San Diego State's 0-0 match with UC Irvine. The Auckland, New Zealand native led an Aztec backline that limited the Anteaters to just one shot on goal and his header in the 82nd minute was one of six San Diego State shots on goal. Adams has played all of the Aztecs' 344:47 shutout streak, helping the Scarlet and Black to the program's first 0-0 two-match weekend.