This week, USF and Stanford earned non-conference road victories against Saint Mary’s and Cal respectively, Santa Clara’s home woes continued, and San Jose State earned a sweep in their two-match road trip vs. Western Athletic Conference foes.
#9 Stanford (7-1-4, 1-1-3) at Saint Mary’s (5-6-2, 0-1-1)
The Gaels put up a valiant defensive effort, but a 44-second sequence doomed them to a 2-0 loss to visiting Stanford.
The Cardinal outshot the Gaels 7-3 in the first half, but Saint Mary’s had a pair of decent chances on a shot by Wade Muttitt that went over the crossbar in the 28th minute and a header by Boyd Curry in the 35th that was saved by goalkeeper Matt Frank.
Stanford pressured the Gaels’ defense in the second half and it paid off when Valentin Kurz was called for a hand ball as he turned his back to block a shot that then deflected off his arm. Cam Cilley converted the spot kick for the Cardinal.
Just 44 seconds later, a foul was called on Boyd Curry and Stanford earned a free kick just outside the penalty area. Will Reilly took the kick and crossed it directly to Mark Fisher, who headed it home.
USF (7-3-2, 0-2-0) at Cal (3-5-4, 1-3-1)
Max Hamelink’s hat trick powered USF to a 5-1 win over Cal on Saturday afternoon, in the first meeting between the two schools since 2017.
Hamelink opened the scoring in the 14th minute with a blast from 25 yards out. But Cal was able to equalize two minutes before halftime when Wyatt Meyer’s cross found Shoei Honda in front of the goal. Honda fought off a USF defender and redirected the ball into the net.
Hamelink also set up USF’s second goal with his run along the right side of the penalty area. He switched the ball to his right to avoid a slide tackle from a Cal defender and tapped it to Rodrigo Bueno for the finish.
Max Chretien gave the visitors a two-goal margin in the 66th minute, heading home Easton Harryman’s long ball into the penalty area.
Hamelink scored again in the 79th minute, after a sustained build-up. Arjan Dosanjh tapped the ball over to Hamelink, who blasted a shot between two Cal defenders and past the Cal goalkeeper. He also completed the hat trick in the 89th minute by converting a penalty kick.
Saint Mary’s
Early Goals Doom Gaels in Loss to Michigan State
The Gaels got off to a slow start in their 2-1 loss at Michigan State on Tuesday evening, the final match of Saint Mary’s eight-game road trip.
The Spartans opened the scoring in the 8th minute on a goal by Will Perkins. Louis Sala dished the ball to Jack Beck, whose long ball from the defensive half found Perkins unmarked as he made his run down the right side. He dribbled the ball into the penalty area as Saint Mary’s Luke Lawrence came up to challenge him. Perkins faked to his left, dribbled to his right and fired a shot that skidded along the ground, hit the inside of the post, and settled in the back of the net.
Beck got a goal of his own 3 minutes later. Sala passed the ball to Jonathan Stout near midfield. Stout held off Bastian Toelhoej and dribbled to the edge of the arc, then dished the ball off to Beck for the lethal finish.
But Saint Mary’s persevered through the rainy conditions and took 8 of their 9 shots in the second half. The Gaels began developing chances early in the half, including a shot from Riley Lynch that hit the side netting in the 55th minute and a shot from Tyler Hardin that tested goalkeeper Owen Finnerty two minutes later.
Saint Mary’s got on the board thanks to a goal by Greg Brighton in the 68th minute. Maxwell Farnum’s shot from 30 yards out forced Finnerty to make a diving stop to his right, and Brighton was there to pounce on the rebound.
The visitors kept looking for the equalizer, but a pair of shots by Boyd Curry in the 79th and 86th minutes went wide.
Santa Clara (3-3-4, 0-0-2)
The Broncos’ troubles in home matches continued with a 2-1 loss to Incarnate Word on Saturday night. It was Incarnate Word’s first positive result this season after beginning the season with 11 consecutive losses.
Victor Velasco was the man of the match for the visitors. He set up their first goal in the 28th minute, sending a cross to the far post that enabled Francisco Segura to score on a one-timer.
But the Broncos recovered quickly, scoring on a quick counter four minutes later. Oladayo Thomas made his run from near midfield, splitting a pair of Cardinal defenders. He took his initial shot from the top of the box, but it was stopped by goalkeeper Hugo Constant. He made a second attempt from the edge of the six-yard box; his shot bounced off of a Cardinal defender and trickled into the net.
Velasco enabled the visitors to escape with the victory in the 81st minute. Abe Ashby took the original shot, but Broncos goalkeeper Blake Gillingham made the kick save. Velasco was waiting for the rebound on the left side and he stuck it into the back of the net.
San Jose State (7-3-2, 3-0-1)
Two Second Half Goals Help Spartans Top Rebels
Beau Leroux continued his recent scoring surge with a pair of goals in the Spartans’ 3-1 win at UNLV on Friday night.
Leroux got the Spartans on the board in the 8th minute, stealing the ball from a UNLV defender near the sideline, taking a few dribbles, and releasing a curving shot from just outside the box that tucked inside the far post, out of the reach of goalkeeper Andrew Sway.
The Rebels evened the match in the 53rd minute when Brophy Howard earned a penalty kick on a foul by Eduardo Miranda. Goalkeeper David Sweeney dove to his right, but Nico Clasen’s shot went straight down the middle.
San Jose State regained the lead 2 minutes later. Finley Wood made a long run and dished the ball off to an unmarked Anthony Guzman on the breakaway. Guzman dribbled the ball into the penalty area, Sway came out to challenge him, but Guzman’s right-footed strike was just out of his reach.
Leroux put the match out of reach and scored a brace in the 76th minute. After a methodical buildup, Guzman made a run down the right sideline, cut back toward the middle, and sent a short cross into the path of Leroux, who burst into the penalty area and placed his shot underneath a diving Sway.
Spartans Score Early/Late in Win at Utah Tech
San Jose State finished a perfect road weekend with a 2-0 win at Utah Tech on Sunday afternoon.
Herminio Padilla put the Spartans on the board in the 9th minute. Isaac Lomeli received a pass at the top of the arc and fed the ball to Padilla, who avoided a tackle attempt by two defenders, dribbled around two more, and fired a shot that skidded along the artificial turf, just out of reach for Trailblazers goalkeeper Jacob Zimmerman.
Angel Iniguez put the match away in the 81st minute. Ryota Nakashima’s cross went right to Iniguez, who maneuvered around a defender and sent a left-footed shot that eluded the diving Zimmerman.
The match featured a dominant performance by the Spartans’ defense, who did not allow a single shot on goal in the entire 90 minute match.
