By Alex Guzman – Spear Reporter | Junior midfielder Neo Ruiz running for the ball on Saturday against UC Davis (Photo by Cesar Maya — Spear photographer)
In the anticipated Mountain West Conference opener on its home turf, San Jose State men’s soccer (3-4-2) tied with the University of California, Davis (0-5-4), 1-1, on Saturday at the Spartan Soccer Complex.
The initial rough start for the Spartans had the Aggies up 1-0 in the first half before momentum shifted after junior midfielder Neo Ruiz’s 68th-minute goal, which forced UC Davis into a more defensive posture in the second half.
Prior to Saturday, SJSU had secured its two previous home game wins and entered the match with a 2-1-1 home record. The Aggies had a strong start with a hunger for their first season win but remained winless after Saturday’s match.
The equalizer came together in a matter of a few seconds when Junior forward Jordi Tortell Daly, worked the ball outside the box before finding space to cross it inside.
“We kept working for it and it was just about time one hit the back of the net,” Ruiz said. “Chino [Angel Gutierrez] got a good tap in with the header, and I just saw it land in front of me. I just hit it, it went in.”
Sophomore forward Amir Anwary, who was named Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week after tallying 2 goals and 2 assists in the Spartans’ win over Saint Mary’s, watched the play from the sideline.
“Just to get that goal and put us back in the game, with just short minutes left, it was really important to us,” Anwary said.
Redshirt senior goalkeeper Ronin Axelson was called upon early in the match, making 2 first-half saves.
That early pressure paid off in the seventh minute when UC Davis junior midfielder Tristan Wouters surprised the Spartans with a left-flank run and right-footed strike into the goal past Axelson.
Wouters’ goal was the only score of the first half and gave the Aggies a 1-0 lead against SJSU.
The Spartans won the previous meeting 2-1, at Aggies Soccer Field on Sept. 24, 2025. The teams also played to a 2-2 draw in their meeting prior to that in San Jose on Sept. 27th, 2024.
Saturday’s matchup between the Spartans and Aggies was physical and swiftly disciplined with both teams receiving yellow cards.
Despite the late equalizer, interim head coach Jesus Sanchez acknowledged that the missed chances throughout the match had tested his team’s belief.
“Sometimes in fútbol, when you don’t score and you have those chances, there’s a feeling that it won’t happen today, but the boys stayed with it,” Sanchez said.
Still, Sanchez was quick to point to the slow start as an area his team needs to clean up heading into the next match.
“We need to start better. We need to be better prepared and more ready to go,” Sanchez said“We kind of made it easy for them [UC Davis] to put us under pressure, so we need to recognize that a little bit better.”
Next, SJSU will travel to face the University of Nevada, Las Vegas at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Peter Johann Memorial Field, Las Vegas, Nev.
