SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Santa Clara men's soccer began its 2016 season with an exhibition match at San Diego State on Wednesday morning. The Aztecs won the contest, 3-2. The teams played a three-period game, the first two were 35 minutes in length and the third was 30 at San Diego State's SDSU Sports Deck.
Heading into the third and final period at a 1-1 tie, Travis Nicklaw and Pablo Pelaez scored two goals for the Aztecs while Bronco sophomore Andres Jimenez scored one goal, giving SDSU a 3-2 victory.
"In the third period we played a lot of our young guys as well as some of the older players too and it was really good experience for those guys," Rast said. "The result wasn't what we wanted but I think we learned a lot and that was more worthwhile than playing to get the win. San Diego State kept their starters in during the third period so for our younger guys to go against their best was good for us. We wanted to make sure we got experience for our guys and we did that."
Over the three periods, Santa Clara took 10 shots, six of which were on target, to San Diego State's five shots (four on target). The Broncos earned six corner kicks while only allowing three. The Aztecs were called offside on two occasions as well.
The squad went down to the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center on Friday and had a very productive five days of training before Wednesday's match.
"The week was very beneficial, we trained seven times," Rast said. "We were able to keep our guys healthy, get them more information and we got some hard work in. The guys grew closer as teammates on the field and as friends and peers off the field. In the big picture items it was a very successful trip for us."
Looking ahead, Rast feels that the training sessions along with today's result will prove to very beneficial for the squad going forward.
"I'm very happy with how the whole thing went," Rast said. "I would've liked to have been a little sharper in the game today, we created some really good chances that I wish we could have finished off. But I think it's also good for us to have to look forward to working hard in our next training sessions and our exhibition leading up to the regular season opener at Wisconsin."
The Broncos return to action for an exhibition match in the friendly confines of Stevens Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 20 at 7:30 p.m. against Sacramento State.
Tickets: Click here to purchase tickets. For groups interested in a discounted rate or for information, call (408) 554-4660 weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. or email BroncoTickets@scu.edu. Gates to Stevens Stadium open two hours prior to kickoff. The ticket office is also open one hour prior to the start of the game.
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