Sophomore forward Ruben Bega braces himself for a high kick from San Diego State defender Justin Davies during the teams’ 1-1 tie Sunday afternoon.
The MSU men’s soccer team was drastically outshot, maintained minimal possession and played most of Sunday’s game on its heels.
But the Spartans were able to earn a 1-1 result through regulation and two sudden-death overtimes against San Diego State at DeMartin Stadium at Old College Field to extend the team’s unbeaten streak to five games.
The match marked MSU’s third game in seven days and MSU head coach Damon Rensing said tired legs played a big part in his team’s struggles.
“To our guys credit, we didn’t have the touch because of the heavy legs, but we worked hard, fought, battled and laid everything on the line,” Rensing said. “Tying the No. 11 RPI team in the country is not a bad result for us.”
The Spartans (10-4-2 overall, 2-3 Big Ten) recorded only five shots through 110 minutes of action, while the Aztecs tallied 18 shots in MSU’s final home game and Senior Day.
But junior defender Colin Givens said most of San Diego State’s shots came from nonthreatening positions.
“We want to force teams to difficult shots,” Given said.
“I’d say eight or nine of their shots came from 25 to 30 yards out. That’s really not going to test (junior goalkeeper Avery Steinlage).”
The Aztecs brought a West-Coast style of soccer to East Lansing and the Spartans struggled to match San Diego State’s speed and technical abilities — relying on the counterattack to generate offense.
“They like to connect passes and get a feel for the ball,” Givens said. “We like to go at teams. Luckily for us, we defended really well as a team and denied their chances.”
The Spartans’ counterattack worked to perfection in the 61st minute.
Sophomore midfielder Cyrus Saydee received a long pass and charged toward the Aztecs’ goal before being fouled just outside the 18-yard box, setting up a dangerous restart.
On the ensuing direct kick, junior midfielder Spencer Thompson lightly touched the ball to the right and onto the foot of sophomore forward Rubin Bega.
The light touch proved to be just enough to change the angle, and Bega was able to bend the ball around an eight-man wall and into the goal.
“We’ve been working on a play where we roll it to my right,” Bega said. “Usually, I hit it near post, but the goalie looked like he was cheating. So I just hit it really hard.”
San Diego State found the equalizer in the 76th minute when Khadim Diouf snuck behind the Spartans’ defense on the left side of the field and slid the ball past Steinlage.
The Aztecs continued the heavy pressure and the rest of the game was played in the Spartans’ half of the field, with MSU recording their last shot of the game in the 70th minute.
But MSU’s defense was able to preserve the tie.
“We had a couple chances to go up 2-0 and didn’t,” Rensing said. “To San Diego State’s credit, they deserved a goal. I think a tie was a fair result.”
Rensing said the tie helps pad the Spartans’ NCAA Tournament résumé, and keep the confidence rolling into the team’s final two games of the regular season this week at No. 1 Akron and at No. 12 Northwestern.
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“If you look at our body of work, we are in decent shape,” Rensing said. “But we want to finish the season strong.”
