Oct. 28, 2015
Match Week Preview
San Diego State (6-7-2, 1-6-0 Pac-12) at Wright State (9-5-1, 4-3-1 Horizon)
Saturday, October 31 | 4 p.m. PT | Alumni Field | Dayton, Ohio
Storylines
- San Diego State will use its Pac-12 Conference bye week to visit Dayton, Ohio, where it will face Horizon League opponent Wright State on Sat., Oct. 31 at 4 p.m. (PT). The match will be broadcast live on ESPN3 from Wright State's Alumni Stadium.
- The Aztecs' non-conference performance has been one of their strongest suits annually. San Diego State is 54-27-13 against non-conference opponents since joining the Pac-12 in 2005. Against Wright State, which competes in the Horizon League, San Diego State is 1-1, winning at home 3-2 in 2014 behind Aztec sophomore Brady Blackwell's two tallies, and falling by the same margin, 3-2, in 2013 at SDSU Sports Deck.
- San Diego State rematched the Pac-12 Conference's Bay Area teams last weekend, dropping its matches to California and No. 3/2 Stanford. The Aztecs came from behind to force overtime against the Golden Bears on Friday, but succumbed to a double overtime goal, falling 4-3. On Monday, San Diego State held Stanford scoreless for the final 63 minutes of its match, but could not overcome an early three-goal deficit and fell to the Cardinal, 3-1.
- The Aztecs' double overtime heartbreaker to California was chock-full of exciting moments, but none were more thrilling for Aztec fans than Travis Nicklaw's match-tying goal in the 85th minute. The redshirt junior blasted a missile from 35 yards out, sending the ball curling into the upper right corner of the net. The rocket was first on the Pac-12 Network's #12Best Moments of the Week for Oct. 19-25.
- San Diego State has one of the most distributed offenses in the conference. Ten different Aztecs have scored goals, one behind California (11) and tied with UCLA (10) among Pac-12 teams.
- Redshirt senior Rene Reyes has been the Aztecs' most reliable scoring threat this season. His four tallies in a season's first three matches are the most for an Aztec since 1999 and he currently ranks tied for eighth in the Pac-12 with five goals. Personally, his five markers are a career high, which he surpassed three matches into the season, and his two-goal outing against San Diego Christian was the first of his career. Three helpers is also a collegiate best for the Oslo, Norway native.
- As a member of Guam's Men's National Team, redshirt-junior Travis Nicklaw and Matao were in Qatar and Turkmenistan in early October for a 2018 World Cup Qualifying match against Turkmenistan on Oct. 13. The San Diego native has helped Matao to a 2-2-1 in round two of World Cup Qualifying with three matches remaining. Despite missing five matches due to his international commitments, Nicklaw is fourth on the Aztecs with two goals and five points.
- In its home matches against Stanford and California, Jeroen Meefout was the Aztecs' top player during the weekend with his parents in the stands visiting from the Netherlands. Against No. 3 Stanford, Meefout scored San Diego State's lone goal of the match just 1:18 in off of the rebound of a Dallin Cutler shot. Against the Golden Bears, he assisted on the match-winner, sending a perfectly-placed free kick to Ozzie Ramos, who sliced in the 1-0 match-winner. In both matches, he led the team in shots (four versus Stanford, three versus California).
- On Oct. 16 and 18, San Diego State out-shot No. 3 Stanford -- the first time the Aztecs out-shot both Stanford and an opponent ranked in the top three since 2013 - and California, continuing a visible trait of its attack this season. The team has out-shot 10 of its 13 opponents, producing a 6-2-2 mark when tallying more chances than its opponent.
- The Aztecs began their conference slate with a pair of 1-0 losses to No. 15 Washington and Oregon State. The last time San Diego State opened Pac-12 play by allowing two goals was in 2011, when the Aztecs opened the conference season with 1-0 and 2-1 wins over Stanford and California.
- For just the sixth time in the program's 48-year history, San Diego State allowed eight-or-fewer goals in its first 10 matches of the season (1979 - 7; 1982 - 4; 1987 - 8; 1988 - 6; 2005 - 5).
- San Diego State head coach Lev Kirshner matches California head coach Kevin Grimes as the longest tenured head coach in Pac-12 men's soccer. Under his tutelage, San Diego State maintains a 74-62-18 record out of conference play.
Opponent Notebook
Wright State
Sitting third in the Horizon League standings, the Raiders are coming off of a heartbreaking 3-2 non-conference loss to Bowling Green. After leading 2-1 early in the second half, thanks to two goals by Marquis Payton, the team allowed two goals in the final 15:12. This season, offense has come readily for Wright State, which leads the Horizon League in scoring offense (1.67), shots per game (14.73) and points per game (4.80). The 2014 Horizon League Player of the Year Eric Lynch is one of three players with five goals, alongside Peguy Ngatcha and Payton. Jackson Dietrich has also been a strong performer for the Raiders, ranking 31st in the nation with 0.43 assists per game. With its offense firing on all cylinders, Wright State hasn't let up on the other side of the ball. The team is ranked 20th nationally with a 0.47 shutout percentage, yielding a 0.90 goals against average for starting keeper Tyler Blackmer. Seventh-year head coach Bryan Davis has led the Raiders to the Horizon League finals twice in the last four seasons.