SAN DIEGO – A pair of second-half goals by Miguel Berry over the span of five minutes helped the University of San Diego men's soccer team overcome a first-half deficit and beat rival San Diego State, 3-2, on Friday at SDSU Sports Deck.

The Toreros (1-0-0) trailed 2-1 after the first 45 minutes, but Berry, a preseason All-WCC selection, took control after the initial 20 minutes of the second half and created his two goals with long runs.

"The first half gave us a lot of confidence," said Berry. "I won't say we weren't ready for the first five minutes, but you never know what to expect. As (head coach Brian Quinn) says, 'It's always a warzone.' In the second half, we settled down, and we knew once the game settled down, we could get on top of them.  

"Total team effort; in the second half, (SDSU) couldn't get the ball out. Ross Meldrum running all over the place, Henry Lander solid in the back as always. Really great performance all across the board."

The season-opening victory by the Toreros was their first over the Aztecs since 2011, snapping a three-match losing streak in the series. 

"The fact is I felt we played well in the first half," said Quinn. "We were down 2-1 (at halftime) after a penalty kick and corner kick set piece, so that part was disappointing, but not the overall play. The challenge to the players in the second half was keep playing the way we want to play. Find our chances but make sure we are organized enough to prevent the third goal." 

San Diego State scored the first goal of the night in the eighth minute on a penalty. An attack by the Aztecs created a scramble in front of the USD goal, and as the Toreros thought they cleared the attempt, a resulting foul allowed the Aztecs to take the penalty, where Pablo Palaez converted. 

The Toreros flipped the momentum quickly, though, as they put together several chances starting in the 17th minute. After a Jacob Planell header bounced off the crossbar in the 20th minute, Meldrum evened the match when he drilled a shot from the right wing in the 23rd.

The tied match was short-lived as the Aztecs' Tristan Weber turned a set piece in the 29th minute into a goal and gave the lead back to SDSU. 

In the 65th minute, Berry took over and tied the match with his first goal of the night. The senior charged down the middle of the field and powered his way through the Aztec defense before finishing with a close shot on the right side. 

Five minutes later, Berry flipped a turnover by SDSU in their final third and finished with his left foot to give the Toreros the eventual game-winning goal.

Berry finished the night with five points (two goals, assist).

USD out-shot SDSU, 13-5, including 7-1 in the second half.

The Toreros return to the field on Monday when they open their home campaign against Cal Poly (7 p.m.).

"We have a quick turnaround, and the focus and the message from the coaches is 'recovery, recovery, recovery,'" said Quinn. "The play itself will be there, but we have to be ready for Monday."