By Nikita Bankar – Spear Reporter | San Jose State men’s soccer in a team huddle during a home game against UT Rio Grande Valley on Nov. 3 (Photo by Iber Moreno – The Spear)
San Jose State men’s soccer (6-7-7, 3-3-3) took a 3-2 win against San Diego State (10-5-3, 7-0-1), marking its second win in the Western Athletic Conference tournament and giving them a ticket to the championship for the fifth time since SJSU joined the WAC in 2013.
This win also marks the first time since 2017 SJSU took down the No. 1 seed in the WAC tournament.
After falling behind 2-0 in the second half, freshman midfielder Cameron Cook pulled the Spartans back into the game when he scored a goal at the bottom left of the goal off his left foot at 60:50.
Junior midfielder Angel Iniguez tied the game just two minutes later with a goal from a shot with his right foot just outside of the box.
Freshman forward Daniel Fregoso Bautista and freshman defender Diego Nieves both earned the first assists of their careers on Cook’s goal.
Graduate student defender Jarette Barajas recorded his first assist of the season with Iniguez’s goal.
“Incredible display of courage and belief by this group today,” associate head coach Jesus Sanchez said in a video on the athletics page. “To go down 2-0 against a top team isn’t always easy, but the boys never put their head down.”
The winning goal came from Iniguez again with a free kick from outside the box at 77:16, who ran straight to head coach Simon Tobin to give him a hug in celebration.
Iniguez, who has been named WAC Offensive Player of the Year, now has 10 goals on the season and 19 goals in his career.
“We look forward to a tough opponent on Saturday, but we are grateful for the opportunity to fight for the WAC championship,” Sanchez said.
SJSU is scheduled to play Seattle University in the WAC Tournament Championship at 5 p.m. on Saturday at GCU Stadium in Phoenix, Ariz.
