By Gerardo Gonzalez (@GerardoG209) – Soccer Beat Reporter
San Jose State men’s soccer (4-3-2, 1-0-1 WAC) rallied against Texas Rio Grande Valley (2-5-2, 0-2-0 WAC) 3-0 at home in their second conference game.
SJSU started the match strong, dominating in all aspects. They outshot UTRGV 17-2 in the first half and freshman goalkeeper Alexis Gonzalez made four saves within those first 45 minutes.
Sophomore midfielder Beau Leroux scored the first goal of the game in the 15th minute with a finish off a cross inside the box from freshman midfielder Angel Iniguez.
The Vaqueros would disrupt the rhythm of the game, piling on fouls. 11 yellow cards were given throughout the game and a total of 24 fouls between both teams allowed the game to change its pace.
However, the pressure and brilliant playmaking that SJSU showcased later in the second half was too much for their opponents. In the 77thminute, sophomore midfielder Mario Barocio hit a curler just outside the 18-yard box to make it 2-0. That would be Barocio’s first goal of the season.
Just a couple of minutes later, Leroux would ice the game with his second of the game to make it 3-0. He is now the team’s top goal scorer with four goals. After the game, Leroux had some comments on his performance.
“It feels pretty great and we also got the win. I’m glad I was able to get two,” he said.
Senior goalkeeper David Sweeney secured his third clean sheet of the season despite only recording one save in the entire match. Sweeney was surprised when asked about his overall stats this season…
“Oh we’re at three already, wow that’s awesome! It feels amazing. We have to keep going forward, take one game at a time to hopefully get more shutouts,” said Sweeney.
SJSU men’s soccer is now undefeated in their last four games now with a 3-1 record. The positive momentum going for head coach Simon Tobin’s side is something that has him really confident going forward until their next conference game in two weeks.
“We have two weeks before we have a huge trip on the road against UNLV and Utah Tech. Games on the road in the WAC are some of the toughest in the country just because of the travel, so we have to gear up for that,” said Tobin after the game on Twitter.
SJSU men’s soccer will play its next match will be against Incarnate Word at home in a non-conference game on Oct. 8 at 7:00 p.m.