(CSTV U-WIRE) SAN DIEGO -- Maybe the San Diego State men's soccer team woke up on the right side of bed. Maybe they ate a solid breakfast.
Whatever they did before their game on Sunday, it worked.
SDSU beat Fairleigh Dickinson 2-0 at the SDSU Sports Deck, just two days after a disappointing 2-0 loss there against the New Jersey Institute of Technology on Friday. Both games were part of the Soccer Post/Aztec Classic.
Their play wasn't much different, but everything started clicking.
"It's not like we played bad on Friday," sophomore midfielder Evan Toft said. "It was a matter of us relaxing as a team, and getting into a good rhythm early."
The Aztecs looked sharp early against FDU, and got on the board 16 minutes into the game on a header from sophomore defender Nick Cardenas.
"We played well for the second game in a row," Cardenas said. "It's just on Friday we couldn't get one in."
It only took just over two minutes for SDSU to score again. After a beautiful cross by Toft, senior midfielder and co-captain Kraig Chiles deflected to sophomore forward Jamel Wallace, who scored his first goal of the season on a wide-open net.
The Aztecs controlled the contest on both sides of the ball. They outshot FDU 14 to 4, including six shots on goal to zero.
SDSU played just as well against NJIT. But despite outshooting the Highlanders 26-11, they weren't able to find the back of the net.
"There was no difference in effort," head coach Lev Kirshner said. "On Friday, we got good looks, (Sunday) we got good looks. They just went in."
The first half was the Aztecs' best of the season, as they outshot FDU 7 to 1 while holding a 6-0 advantage in corner kicks. SDSU also punished the Knights, recording 15 total fouls to FDU's 13.
"Physically, we stepped it up," Cardenas said. "Our defense was improved, and getting our first shutout is big."
The Aztecs' defense made redshirt freshman goalkeeper Brad Byrns' job a lot easier. Byrns, who didn't even record a save, earned his first career shutout in just the third start of his collegiate career.
FDU, coming off of a loss to USD, was never able to get things going. SDSU's swarming defense prevented the Knights from getting comfortable offensively.
"This was definitely a great win," Cardenas said. "It feels like a weight's been lifted off our shoulders."
(C) 2007 The Daily Aztec via U-WIRE
