Oct. 2, 2016
SAN DIEGO -- San Diego State's Travis Nicklaw recorded his third game-winning goal of the year Sunday as the No. 22/19 Aztec men's soccer team emerged with a 1-0 triumph in overtime over 16th-ranked Washington in a Pac-12 clash at SDSU Sports Deck.
With the victory, the Aztecs raise their record to 6-1-3 on the year and 1-0-1 in conference play, while the Huskies slip to 7-3 overall and 1-1 in the Pac-12.
With just over a minute elapsed in the extra session, freshman Spencer Madden launched a shot from the right side of the box that caromed off the hands of Washington goalkeeper Auden Schilder, while Nicklaw found himself in perfect position to tap home the rebound from roughly eight yards away. It was the first collegiate assist for Madden, whose presence helped the Scarlet and Black defeat Washington for the first time since 2010.
"After losing a couple points in a very physical double-overtime match on Thursday, we witnessed the grit, character and mental fortitude of our group today," said SDSU head coach Lev Kirshner. "This was an impressive effort against an impressive team. I am very happy for my players and staff. They deserve this win."
Redshirt junior Adam Allmaras came up huge once again in front of the goal, collecting six saves on the afternoon, including five in the first half to keep the Huskies off the scoreboard. The Aztec netminder also extinguished the Huskies' final threat of match with a stop of Handwalla Bwana's boot in the 86th minute en route to his seventh clean sheet of the season and 17th of his career.
SDSU narrowly missed on two opportunities in the first half as Nicklaw's header in the 28th minute flew just to the left of the goal, while a similar attempt by freshman Daniel Sagno hit the upper left portion of the crossbar just over two minutes later.
The Aztecs outshot UW 17-15, including an 8-5 spread in the second half and overtime. Individually, Nicklaw and redshirt freshman Pablo Pelaez tied for match-high honors with four shots apiece, while Sagno recorded three attempts of his own. In addition, junior Jeroen Meefout returned to the pitch in the second half after suffering an ankle injury against San Diego last week, finishing with two shots on goal.
SDSU was without the services of starter Mac Clarke, who sat out after amassing five yellow cards on the year, while Debray Hollimon was sidelined after receiving a red card against Oregon State on Thursday. Nevertheless, the Aztecs received a tremendous performance from junior Ernest Reyes, who made his first start of the year in just three appearances and played all 91 minutes, while seniors Sergio Enriquez, Matt Callahan and sophomore Kyle Adams contributed to another stellar defensive showing.
San Diego State will be back in action next weekend for a single match when it plays host to UCLA at SDSU Sports Deck. Opening tap is scheduled for 7 p.m. PT and admission is free.
MAN OF THE MATCH: With a collective herculean effort, the entire Aztec team was tabbed Man of the Match by head coach Lev Kirshner after Sunday's thrilling victory over No. 16 Washington. SDSU has now posted seven shutouts on the year and has allowed just four goals in its first 10 games this season.