Three was the magic number for the San Diego State men’s soccer team as it cruised to a 3-0 win over the George Washington University Colonials in Sunday’s game at the SDSU Sports Deck.
Senior forward Rene Reyes scored his third goal of the season; the Aztecs scored three goals for the third straight game, and the team improved its record to 3-0 for the first time in Head Coach Lev Kirshner’s 16-year tenure.
“We realize that we’re a great team in a great conference, which is obviously going to be tough every day,” junior defender Matt Callahan said.
The Aztecs dominated possession in the first half and created many scoring chances early on.
In the 15th minute Callahan sent in a cross from the right wing that took a deflection off of a GWU defender and ended up in the back of the net for an own goal, giving the Aztecs a 1-0 advantage.
SDSU kept possession of the ball for a majority of the first half and moved the ball well. Freshman defender Kyle Adams played a key role in shutting down the Colonials’ attacks.
“(Adams) has been very impressive.” Kirshner said. “The ability to win the aerial contests in the division one game is so critical and he is a beast in the air.”
In the 33rd minute SDSU sophomore midfielder Earnest Reyes drew a foul about three yards outside the top of the penalty box. This set up a free kick for sophomore forward Jereon Meefout, who extended the Aztecs’ lead with a well-placed shot into the top left corner.
Meefout said he thinks the depth of the offense has led to the Aztecs’ offensive success.
“We have a lot of options (on offense) and I think that’s going to help us through the rest of the season too,” he said.
The Colonials’ lone scoring chance in the first half came when junior forward Garrett Heine sent a free kick off the top of the crossbar and out of bounds for a goal kick.
SDSU ended the first half with six shots on goal and held GWU to zero shots on goal.
The Colonials started the second half with much more urgency and dominated possession early, but they were unable to generate many scoring chances against the SDSU back line.
The Aztecs entered the game having only given up two goals on the season, but had yet to record a clean sheet.
“The guys have just committed to defending and that’s what we want,” Callahan said. “If we get clean sheets we win or tie so that’s just the biggest thing for us.”
After the Aztec defense weathered the early pressure from the Colonials in the second half, things calmed down and the Aztecs were able to generate a couple chances of their own.
SDSU ramped up the attack in the 78th minute and generated several scoring chances in a row. In the 84th minute sophomore midfielder Dellin Cutler found his way in on goal and was pulled down from behind to draw a penalty.
Reyes stepped up to the penalty spot and tucked his shot home to end the scoring at 3-0.
“The confidence that we’re brewing from these victories is really going to be important as we get tested next weekend,” Kirshner said.
The Aztecs take on Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (2-2-0) Friday Sept. 11 at 7 p.m. at the SDSU Sports Deck.
