Two seconds was all San Diego State men’s soccer needed to receive its second win in Pac-12 play this season.
However, victory was snatched away in a double-overtime 1-1 draw against University of Washington on Friday night at the SDSU Sports Deck.
The Aztecs were determined to fight for the win after falling behind to the Huskies 1-0 with less than 10 minutes left in the game on Oct. 2 in Seattle.
“(Washington) left us a bitter taste in our mouths when we lost up in Washington in the last couple of minutes,” redshirt-sophomore midfielder Dallin Cutler said. “We really tried to prepare hard for them.”
SDSU’s first chance to score came in the 21st minute when junior defender Matt Callahan took a corner kick and sent it straight to redshirt-senior forward Rene Reyes. Reyes headed the ball toward the center of the net but slightly missed as the ball went over.
The Aztecs dominated the first half, keeping their defensive line tight throughout and attacking offensively.
Their efforts were rewarded in the 42nd minute when sophomore midfielder Ozzie Ramos took a corner from the left side and found Cutler, who was only a couple yards away from goal. Cutler chipped it into the net to give SDSU the 1-0 lead.
The goal was the first for Cutler in his collegiate career and makes SDSU the team with the most distributed offense in the conference with 12 different players scoring.
The Aztecs outshot the Huskies 6-5 in the first half.
Despite its lead, SDSU did not loosen up in the second half.
It had its next chance to score in the 66th minute. Sophomore forward Jeroen Meefout took a free kick 25 yards out from the left and perfectly curved the ball for freshman defender Kyle Adams. Adams headed the ball to sophomore midfielder Ernest Reyes who then chipped the ball slightly over the net.
Washington then began to play aggressively with multiple fouls marked against it.
In the 71st minute, Washington sophomore defender Garett Jackson received the ball in close range of the net and shot the ball directly to the center of the net out of redshirt-sophomore goalkeeper Adam Allmaras’ reach. However, Callahan was there to kick the ball out.
With less than 30 seconds left in the match, the Aztecs could almost smell victory.
The final countdown began and the 902 fans were getting ready to leave.
As the scoreboard counted down from five, Washington senior defender Michael Gallagher took a left corner kick and set up a goal for Jackson. Jackson received the ball and sent it into the net with only two seconds remaining, tying the match 1-1.
“Washington is excellent on their offensive side pieces, and if you keep giving them chance after chance, then unfortunately you sit with two seconds left and get an equalizer,” head coach Lev Kirshner said.
Double-overtime consisted of vigorous attempts for the goal from both teams.
In the ninth minute of the period, Washington sophomore midfielder Henry Wingo snuck past SDSU’s backline and took the ball from the half-way line. He shot the ball from the left side of the box, only for it to hit the left corner of the top post.
The match ended with a draw, with each team taking 14 shots.
“At the end of the end of the day, we deserved that victory,” Kirshner said. “We were better in the night.”
The Aztecs are now 1-6-1 in Pac-12 play and 7-7-3 overall. They will next face Oregon State on Sunday at 12 p.m. at the SDSU Sports Deck.
“We absolutely need a win against Oregon (State) and then UCLA if we have any hopes of making the NCAA tournament this year,” Cutler said.
