SAN DIEGO — A dominant, cohesive performance from the No. 8 San Diego back line combined with a pair of electric goals from
Samy Kanaan on Saturday night led USD men's soccer (10-1-2, 4-0-0 WCC) to a wire-to-wire team victory over Oregon State (8-3-2, 4-1-0 WCC), shutting out the West Coast Conference leading Beavers by a 2-0 margin in front of a season-high crowd of 2,107 at Torero Stadium.
Kanaan found the back of the net early, combining with Ethan Warne for a quick one-two that led to an impressive finish in the box in the 17th minute, and then two minutes later bagged a penalty kick goal to give his team an early 2-0 lead that they maintained throughout the remaining 70 minutes.
The Torero back line alongside goalkeeper Donovan Parisian successfully shutout Oregon State who previously led the conference in total goals scored. Collectively, they limited the Beavers to just three shots on goal, as Parisian finished his night with three total saves.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Kanaan got the Toreros on the score sheet early in front of a full crowd of buzzing vuvuzelas at Torero Stadium with a perfect shot that found the bottom left corner of the goal leaving the Beaver goalkeeper with no chance, making it 1-0 Toreros in the 17th minute.
- Just two minutes later in the 19th minute, a push from an Oregon State defender on Cesar Bahena earned a penalty kick for USD that Kanaan buried to give him his second goal of the game, making it 2-0 San Diego in the 20th minute of play
- The Torero defense held firm through the remainder of the first period of play to keep the score 2-0 at the break.
- Back-to-back clutch saves from Parisian in the 69th and 71st minute successfully kept the Beavers off the board in the second half.
- Kanaan nearly earned a hat trick in the 79th minute when he curled a shot towards the far post, but it missed inches wide.
- Cohesive defense from USD throughout the remainder of the match kept Oregon State scoreless as the Toreros were able to claim a 2-0 shutout victory.
TORERO TIDBITS
- With his pair of goals against the Beavers, Kanaan is now tied for the lead in total goals scored in the West Coast Conference with eight.
- Parisian earned his third cleansheet of the year on Saturday evening, and second consecutive game played with three total saves.
- Warne earned his second assist of the season after setting up the opening goal for Kanaan
CATCHING UP WITH THE TOREROS
UP NEXT
After wrapping up a two game home stand with wins over Santa Clara and Oregon State, the Toreros will now head on the road to take on San Francisco on Wednesday evening. Kickoff at Negoesco Stadium is set for 7:00 PM. Live streaming and live video links can be found through the team's website.
