October 25, 2008
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Tony Fernandez scored one goal in each half Saturday night, helping UC San Diego defeat Seattle Pacific 5-0 in a non-conference men's game at Triton Soccer Field.
SPU's record fell to 5-7-3 while the Tritons improved to 9-5-2.
“We didn't have the energy tonight that it takes to win,” explained first-year Falcons coach
Mark Collings. “We weren't very sharp and they were very ready for this game.”
Fernandez sandwiched goals in the 28th and 56th minutes around a goal by Aaron McDowell at 31:30.
The Falcons nearly drew within 2-1 eight minutes into the second half, but a shot by junior
Enis Isufi (Auburn, Wash.) caromed off the post and deflected off a defender before being collected by the UCSD goalkeeper.
The second goal by Fernandez came less than two minutes later, extending the margin to a comfortable 3-0.
Tom Caplan, who assisted on the Tritons first goal, scored the fourth on a header off Tony Choi's corner kick at 67:43.
The final tally, at 73:03, came on an own goal as the ball went off Falcons defender
Jono Henness.
Goalkeeper Peter Akman made three saves in 80 minutes for UCSD before being replaced by Ryan McDowell, who stopped two shots during the final 10 minutes.
Sophomore
Kaleb Kuehn (Marysville, Wash./Marysville-Pilchuck) played the entire game for SPU and was credited with six saves.
Seattle Pacific was outshot 22-14 and hit the post on three occasions.
The Falcons remain on the road for another non-conference game at Grand Canyon, Monday, Oct. 27 in Phoenix, Ariz.
“The biggest thing is, we'll find out is how bad some of these kids want to compete,” Collings said of the next game on the road trip. “We'll regroup and get our legs back for a tough game Monday at Grand Canyon. We still have a lot to play for.”
The Falcons reside in second place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings with a 4-2 record. They are one-half game behind league-leading Western Washington (4-1) with a season-ending matchup in Bellingham scheduled for Nov. 8.
The next home game for the SPU men is Nov. 1 at 4:30 p.m. against 22nd-ranked Cal State L.A. That is the opener of a doubleheader with the women, who play at 7 p.m.
The Nov. 1 doubleheader is Neil Callahan Night, honoring the youth soccer pioneer and former president of the Seattle Youth Soccer Association who passed away last December.
NCAA Men's Soccer
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Triton Soccer Field, San Diego, Calif.
UC San Diego 5, Seattle Pacific 0
Scoring -- 1, UCSD, Tony Fernandez (Tom Caplan), 27:02. 2, UCSD, Aaron McDowell (Tony Choi), 31:30. 3, UCSD, Tony Fernandez (David Bakal), 55:38. 4, UCSD, Tom Caplan (Tony Choi), 67:43. 5, UCSD, (own goal), 73:03.
Shots – SPU 14, UCSD 22.
Saves – SPU 6 (
Kaleb Kuehn), UCSD 5 (Peter Akman 3, Ryan McDowell 2).
Corner kicks – SPU 5, UCSD 9.
Fouls – SPU 7, UCSD 14.
Offsides – SPU 0, UCSD 2.
Attendance -- 762.
Records –
Seattle Pacific 5-7-3
UC San Diego 9-5-2
