MEN'S SOCCER CLOSES OUT HOME SCHEDULE AGAINST NEW MEXICO, UNLV

11/6/2008

HORNETS CLOSE OUT HOME PORTION OF SCHEDULE HOSTING NEW MEXICO AND UNLV
    After a split of road matches in the state of Colorado, the Sacramento State men’s soccer team returns home to face the New Mexico Lobos and UNLV Rebels in their final two home matches of the season. New Mexico is currently in second place in the MPSF, trailing first place Denver by seven points, which is the equivalent of two wins and a tie. UNLV is in third place, and is looking for its first road victory, having posted a 3-0 record at home in conference play.

SAYING GOODBYE
    The home game against UNLV on Sunday afternoon will mark the final home match for six Hornet seniors. Second-year seniors P.J. Egloria, Blake Nunes, Brady Nunes and Omar Martinez will join four-year seniors Adam Owens and Josh Zimbrich in playing their final match at Hornet Soccer Field. The six players will be honored in a ceremony that will take place starting 15 minutes before match time.

HORNETS FALL TO FIRST PLACE DENVER, 3-1
    The Sacramento State men’s soccer team dropped a 3-1 decision to the first place team in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, the Denver Pioneers, on Sunday, Nov. 2.
    The Pioneers opened the scoring in the 34th minute, as Kyle Christensen scored on a diving header, giving his team a 1-0 lead. Denver added insurance in the 45th minute before halftime, for the second straight match between the two clubs, as Collin Audley connected on a scoring strike from the top of the box, giving Denver a 2-0 lead into intermission.
    The Hornets pulled to within one goal in the 77th minute, as sophomore Fernando Cabadas scored his second goal of the season, off of a cross from fellow sophomore Ernesto Carranza. But before Sacramento State could find the tying goal, Denver added a third goal in the 84th minute, as Christensen found the back of the net once again to give the Pioneers a two goal victory.
    For the match, Denver outshot the Hornets 15-10, with the Pioneers holding an 8-6 advantage in shots on goal. Senior Blake Nunes and juniors Scott Crandall and Zach Tuss posted two shots apiece for the Hornets, while junior ‘keeper Ryan Kenny posted five saves in goal.

CHRIS BETTENCOURT SCORES TWO GOALS, BLAKE NUNES ADDS ONE, AS HORNETS BEAT AIR FORCE 3-0
    Redshirt freshman Chris Bettencourt scored two goals and added an assist, while senior Blake Nunes scored a goal and recorded two assists as the Sacramento State men’s soccer team defeated Air Force, 3-0, on Friday, Oct. 31.
    The Hornets opened the scoring in the 21st minute, as Nunes centered a ball to Bettencourt, who fired in a shot from 12 yards out, scoring his second goal of the season, to give the Hornets a 1-0 advantage they took into halftime.
    Insurance came in the 60th minute, as Bettencourt provided a well placed through ball to the foot of Nunes, who scored from the top of the 18 to make the lead 2-0. Bettencourt finished his career day in the 85th minute, as Nunes took advantage of an out of position ‘keeper, centering a ball to Bettencourt, who shot into a wide open net to give the Hornets a 3-0 victory.
    Junior Ryan Kenny posted his sixth career clean sheet in goal for the Hornets, stopping all five shots sent his way during the 90 minutes of action. For the match, the Hornets outshot the Falcons by a slim 12-11 margin, with each team having four players post two shots apiece.