Sept. 29, 2016
SAN DIEGO -- The No. 22/19 San Diego State men's soccer team played Oregon State to a 1-1 draw Thursday in a hard-fought Pac-12 opener at SDSU Sports Deck. With the result, the Aztecs move to 5-1-3 on the season, while the Beavers stand at 4-3-2 overall.
The closely contested match was scoreless until the 67th minute when Matt Callahan's header from five yards out found the back of the net, putting SDSU in front, 1-0. The Aztec goal was set up by Michael Sauers, who deposited the ball into the far right wing where Dallin Cutler gathered the pass and directed it back to an awaiting Callahan, who fought through traffic in the center of the box.
However, OSU got the equalizer late in regulation when Hassani Dotson struck from 14 yards away on a pass from Eric Diaz in the 83rd minute.
"I thought our team came out very strong in the second half after an average first half," said SDSU head coach Lev Kirshner. "We really did a good job to get up a goal. It was a very difficult game for both teams and 1-1 might be the right result, but I am very proud of the effort and what we did to make adjustments in the second half. We just have to get ourselves back ready for Sunday."
The Aztecs played the final 18 minutes a man down after Debray Hollimon was given a red card near midfield with 80 seconds elapsed the first overtime period. The Scarlet and Black still managed to keep the Beavers off the scoreboard the rest of the way, with goalkeeper Adam Allmaras making the last of six saves on the night on David Norman Jr.'s attempt in the fifth minute of the first extra session.
The only shot of the second overtime belonged to SDSU, but Travis Nicklaw's try was blocked by the OSU defense. The Aztec redshirt senior led the team with four shots, including one on goal in the 76th minute that was saved by Beaver goalkeeper Nolan Wirth.
For the contest, SDSU maintained a 5-1 advantage in corner kicks, including two in the second overtime, but was unable to capitalize.
San Diego State returns to the pitch on Sunday, Oct. 2, when it faces Washington at SDSU Sports Deck, beginning at noon PT. Admission is free to all Aztec men's soccer home matches.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Senior Matt Callahan was selected as Man of the Match after scoring his first goal of the season in the 67th minute. The Aztec co-captain played the entire 110 minutes, finishing with two shots on net.
"I thought Matt did a great job for us on both sides of the ball," Kirshner added. "Obviously, getting the go-ahead goal, to have the courage to get into the attack, to win that ball and score was phenomenal. Defensively, he was very strong for us and good on the ball. He just had a wonderful game."