Tuesday, April 13
Las Vegas, NV
3:30 p.m. MT
Air Force Academy
2
vs
2
San Jose State
Photo by: Lucas Peltier
Falcons Victorious in PK Thriller
4/13/2021 7:10:00 PM | Men's Soccer
LAS VEGAS - Air Force battled back from an early two-goal deficit to defeat San Jose State in the final penalty kick, 2-2 (4-3 PK), in the first round of the Western Athletic Conference tournament on a windy Tuesday afternoon at Peter Johann Memorial Field. The Falcons (4-4-2) now advance to the tournament semifinals for the first time since 2016.
San Jose State (5-1-2) put the Falcons in a difficult situation, rattling off two goals in two minutes to put the Falcons down by a pair of goals to nil in the 28th minute. Determined to keep the season alive, Air Force's Tristan Trager found an opportunity to strike in the 29th minute via touches from Michael Neacsu and Giuliano Daniel.
As tensions mounted in a tight match, the Falcons gritted out the equalizer in the 42nd minute as Quinn Matulis fed the ball to Jake Angeletti in deep, who then crossed it to Lathan Spadafora for the finish to the right from in close, knotting the match at two heading into the halftime break.
The Falcons and Spartans continued to play an intense match, taking six shots to seven, respectively, in the second 45. Junior keeper Kainoa Likewise posted a stellar eight saves in regulation. At the 90-minute horn, SJSU outshot Air Force 19-10, but Likewise made more than double the saves of the SJSU keeper, 8-3.
In the first overtime period, San Jose State, with the wind at their back, fired off two more shots, one of which on target but saved by again by Likewise. The Falcons were unable to get a shot off in 20 minutes of overtime play, pushing the match to penalty kicks. Air Force's Jake Chaffetz and Max Sole anchored the Air Force defense that held the Spartans scoreless for the remainder of the match, registering 110 and 102 minutes on the pitch, respectively.
The Spartans' Max Allen was the first to shoot, beating Likewise to the post for a good goal. Quinn Matulis took the first attempt for Air Force, putting the ball past David Sweeney after a hesitation step.
SJSU's Rudy Castro, who scored both of the Spartans' goals in regulation, took the second attempt but blasted the ball high and out. Air Force's Latahan Spadafora took the second attempt and finished left outside of Sweeney's reach.
The third attempts came from Falcon team captain Giuliano Daniel and Willy Miranda, who both connected for good goals, putting the tally at 3-2 in favor of Air Force.
Next up for the Spartans was Finlay Wood, who got it past Likewise to knot the goal count at three each. Luke Hill lined up for the fourth attempt and sent a rocket hard into the left post but caught a bad deflection and left the teams equal at three apiece.
The WAC's Hercules Tire Strong Move of the Match was awarded to Likewise in the next attempt, as the product of Colorado Springs, Colorado, made a diving save to the left post, giving the Falcons a chance to win the game in their final attempt. Air Force's 2021 All-WAC Honorable Mention, Tristan Trager, lined up with Sweeney for the final shot. Trager gave Sweeney a hesitation stutter step, pulling the keeper off his line to his knees and unable to defend as Trager finished with a light touch low and to the right.
"I'm proud of the effort," head coach Doug Hill said. "It took a lot of character and belief to battle back from a two-goal deficit, but the men stuck it out and proved that they are one of the best teams in the WAC. It was nice to come out on top today, both teams played extremely hard, but I think we just believed in ourselves more. We are going to enjoy the win tonight and prepare for a tough UTRGV team on Thursday."
The Falcons continue tournament action against the second-seeded UTRGV Vaqueros, Thursday (April 15) at 2:30 p.m. PT, at Peter Johann Memorial Field. The Falcons will look to redeem a 3-1 regular-season loss to the Vaqueros.
San Jose State (5-1-2) put the Falcons in a difficult situation, rattling off two goals in two minutes to put the Falcons down by a pair of goals to nil in the 28th minute. Determined to keep the season alive, Air Force's Tristan Trager found an opportunity to strike in the 29th minute via touches from Michael Neacsu and Giuliano Daniel.
As tensions mounted in a tight match, the Falcons gritted out the equalizer in the 42nd minute as Quinn Matulis fed the ball to Jake Angeletti in deep, who then crossed it to Lathan Spadafora for the finish to the right from in close, knotting the match at two heading into the halftime break.
The Falcons and Spartans continued to play an intense match, taking six shots to seven, respectively, in the second 45. Junior keeper Kainoa Likewise posted a stellar eight saves in regulation. At the 90-minute horn, SJSU outshot Air Force 19-10, but Likewise made more than double the saves of the SJSU keeper, 8-3.
In the first overtime period, San Jose State, with the wind at their back, fired off two more shots, one of which on target but saved by again by Likewise. The Falcons were unable to get a shot off in 20 minutes of overtime play, pushing the match to penalty kicks. Air Force's Jake Chaffetz and Max Sole anchored the Air Force defense that held the Spartans scoreless for the remainder of the match, registering 110 and 102 minutes on the pitch, respectively.
The Spartans' Max Allen was the first to shoot, beating Likewise to the post for a good goal. Quinn Matulis took the first attempt for Air Force, putting the ball past David Sweeney after a hesitation step.
SJSU's Rudy Castro, who scored both of the Spartans' goals in regulation, took the second attempt but blasted the ball high and out. Air Force's Latahan Spadafora took the second attempt and finished left outside of Sweeney's reach.
The third attempts came from Falcon team captain Giuliano Daniel and Willy Miranda, who both connected for good goals, putting the tally at 3-2 in favor of Air Force.
Next up for the Spartans was Finlay Wood, who got it past Likewise to knot the goal count at three each. Luke Hill lined up for the fourth attempt and sent a rocket hard into the left post but caught a bad deflection and left the teams equal at three apiece.
The WAC's Hercules Tire Strong Move of the Match was awarded to Likewise in the next attempt, as the product of Colorado Springs, Colorado, made a diving save to the left post, giving the Falcons a chance to win the game in their final attempt. Air Force's 2021 All-WAC Honorable Mention, Tristan Trager, lined up with Sweeney for the final shot. Trager gave Sweeney a hesitation stutter step, pulling the keeper off his line to his knees and unable to defend as Trager finished with a light touch low and to the right.
"I'm proud of the effort," head coach Doug Hill said. "It took a lot of character and belief to battle back from a two-goal deficit, but the men stuck it out and proved that they are one of the best teams in the WAC. It was nice to come out on top today, both teams played extremely hard, but I think we just believed in ourselves more. We are going to enjoy the win tonight and prepare for a tough UTRGV team on Thursday."
The Falcons continue tournament action against the second-seeded UTRGV Vaqueros, Thursday (April 15) at 2:30 p.m. PT, at Peter Johann Memorial Field. The Falcons will look to redeem a 3-1 regular-season loss to the Vaqueros.
Players Mentioned
Midfield
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Midfield
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Midfield
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Goalkeeper
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Midfield
/ Men's Soccer
Midfield
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Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
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