Santa Clara University’s men’s soccer team secured a 2-0 win over San Diego State on Friday night at the SDSU Sportsdeck. Niv Berkovitz scored both goals for the Broncos, while goalkeeper Jackson Ozburn posted his second consecutive shutout with four saves.
Berkovitz’s first goal came in the 20th minute after Diego Diaz headed a corner kick toward the net. San Diego State’s goalkeeper Eddy Vargas saved Diaz’s effort, but Berkovitz quickly followed up to score. This marked Berkovitz’s second goal of the season and his first game-winning goal this year.
In the first half, Santa Clara created several scoring opportunities despite being outshot 5-4 by San Diego State. Early in the second half, Lorenzo Hernandez had a close-range shot for San Diego State, but Ozburn blocked it to preserve Santa Clara’s lead.
San Diego State appeared to tie the match in the 72nd minute, but the referee disallowed the goal due to interference with Ozburn by an Aztec player. In the 82nd minute, Berkovitz added his second goal after collecting a loose ball near the penalty area and chipping it into the net following a scramble involving Simon Diagana and two defenders.
Head coach Cam Rast commented on Berkovitz’s performance: “On the first goal, Niv did a great job slashing behind and got his head on the ball. It happened fairly early in the game and put us on the front foot and helped us to unlock the game. In the second half, we were sitting a little bit but we got free and battled up front with good numbers into the attack. He weaved his way and found himself one-on-one with with the goalkeeper and while alot of guys might try to slot it off to the sides but the keeper got big and when you do that, they tend to get down, so he chipped it over. It was a super classy shot.”
Rast also addressed changes in defense: “We were a bit short handed in the backline tonight even though we got Diego back but he was a bit limited. This week, Yu looked really good in training and we felt he was ready for his first minutes. He played well and we weren’t sure how long he was gonna go but he was steady back there. Ozburn made some good saves and relieved alot of pressure off the back.”
Looking ahead to their next match against Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Rast said: “Tomorrow we fly to Phoenix for our Monday night match against Grand Canyon. Once we get to Phoenix, we will lay low in the afternoon as we relax and recover. We’ll look at some film and show the team what we can do better along with some game prep. We are expecting a big crowd with high energy. It should be a good match.”
With this victory, Santa Clara now holds a 13-7-3 advantage over San Diego State in their series history. The Broncos have won their last two matches without conceding any goals.
Sophomore defender Yu Yokokawa made his collegiate debut during this match, playing 63 minutes after showing promise during recent training sessions.
The Broncos’ next game is scheduled against Grand Canyon University on Monday at 7 p.m.
