LOS ANGELES – A late goal by senior Pablo Vasquez wasn’t quite enough on Sunday afternoon, as the San Diego State Aztec men’s soccer team concluded its 2014 season with a narrow road loss to No. 6 UCLA, 2-1, at Drake Stadium.

 

Vasquez’s goal came on a free kick in the 90^th minute to give the Aztecs one last chance of a late rally, but time was not on their side by that point in the match. UCLA took the lead in the first half, as Leo Stolz scored in the 31^st minute off a double assist from Chase Gasper and Willie Raygoza.

 

The Bruins tacked on a critical insurance goal to extend their lead to 2-0 in the 68^th minute, when Abu Danladi dribbled past SDSU redshirt freshman goalkeeper Adam Allmaras and knocked it through an empty net.

 

SDSU (7-12, 1-9 Pac-12) lost for just the second time in eight matches this season when scoring last in a contest. It’s also the ninth match the Aztecs have lost by one goal this year, including their seventh one-goal loss to a ranked opponent, as seven of San Diego State’s nine Pac-12 defeats have been by just one goal.

 

The Pac-12 has been the No. 1 RPI conference in Division I throughout this season, as it entered the week with the top winning percentage (.627), the best road winning percentage (.553) and the best strength of schedule based on opponents winning percentage (.590) in the country.

 

Junior Rene Reyes recorded a team-high three shots on Sunday, while Vasquez finished with two shot attempts and Allmaras tallied two saves. In addition, senior defender and team captain Evyn Hewett played all 90 minutes and completed the season by playing every minute of every match on the back line for the Aztecs (1,725).

 

SDSU outshot UCLA in the first half, 4-3, before the Bruins eventually finished the match with a 9-7 edge in shots. The two teams had four corner kicks apiece, as San Diego State completed the season with a 4-4 record when either tied or ahead in corner kicks. The Aztecs were a perfect 3-0 this season when having more corner kicks than the opposition.

 

San Diego State’s 7 home victories this season are tied for the most wins at SDSU Sports Deck since 2006 (8). The Aztecs went 6-3 in non-conference play, and are now 18-5-2 in non-conference home matches since the beginning of the 2010 season. In addition, SDSU went 6-2 in matches this season when scoring first, 7-4 when either ahead or tied at halftime, and 5-1 when either outshooting or tied in shots attempted.  

 

The Aztecs finished the 2014 campaign with three victories over ranked opponents, as they’ve played five matches against teams ranked in the top 10 of the NSCAA Coaches Poll, and 13 contests against teams who were ranked at some point this season.

 

Man of the Match: Senior Henrik Synnes (Vigra, Norway) was named Man of the Match on Sunday afternoon, as he closed out his career on Montezuma Road by playing all 90 minutes and recording one shot. Synnes appeared in 21 career matches in an Aztec uniform with seven starts, recording two goals.