Men’s soccer defeats San Diego State in season’s first overtime match

For the first time this season, the Bruins went to overtime.

No. 21 UCLA men’s soccer (8-4, 4-1 Pac-12) snagged a last-second victory against San Diego State (5-6-1, 1-4) on Saturday night, winning 2-1 on freshman midfielder Cody Sundquist’s game-winning shot in the 99th minute.

The game was tied 1-1 in the 87th minute when Sundquist took the field as a late-game substitute. It was Sundquist’s fifth appearance of the season, and he scored the first goal of his collegiate career.

“I definitely did not expect it to happen,” Sundquist said. “Coach told me to try and connect all my passes when I got on the field, so I really was just trying to go on and help the team win in any way that I could, and just be safe with the ball and not lose it.”

Neither team got off a shot in the first eight minutes of overtime. With the game on the brink of going final at any second, redshirt senior midfielder Joab Santoyo took control of the ball deep in Aztec territory.

Santoyo said he knew it was the opportunity the Bruins had been waiting for to break the tie.

“Right when it went to overtime, we huddled up and were all talking about how it just takes one play,” Santoyo said. “As I see the ball coming from the deep end, I get a good through ball from (sophomore forward) Milan (Iloski), I get it trapped, I see a whole bunch of space on my right side and I’m just thinking take off and try to get a teammate in the best possible position to get a goal.”

Santayo found Sundquist open in the box and sent a low cross from the right wing. Sundquist tapped it in and was swarmed by his teammates as the final whistle sounded.

“It was a great goal and really fitting because (Sundquist) has been such a good player for our team,” said coach Jorge Salcedo. “Sometimes when players don’t play, they feel as if they aren’t contributing. But he’s been a really fantastic addition to our program… For (Sundquist) to score the game-winning goal, it was a fantastic feeling for him and for the team.

Earlier in the game, another rookie came through for UCLA.

Freshman midfielder Frankie Amaya put the Bruins on the board 33 seconds into the second half, chipping a shot over the head of Aztec goalkeeper Max Watkin for his second career goal. Amaya started the last seven games for UCLA after recovering from an MCL sprain earlier in the year.

“(Amaya) has gotten better and better for us every game,” Salcedo said. “Last weekend at home, he had two high-quality performances. Once again today he finds a way to contribute.”

The Bruins held the lead until San Diego State midfielder Adam Vargas gathered a pass on the right side and shot the ball inside the near post to bring the score to 1-1 in the 72nd minute.

Salcedo said he was impressed by the way his players responded to losing their lead late in the game.

“We knew how important it was to be at 12 points instead of nine points,” Salcedo said. “I was really proud of how the guys persevered in overtime. San Diego State put us under pressure in the second half, but we kept them from getting momentum.  … To me, it shows how much growth the team has had.”

Sundquist’s goal ultimately pushed UCLA to its first overtime win since last year’s home game against San Diego State.

“It was the best feeling I’ve had throughout the whole season,” Sundquist said. “And it feels even better to be in first place in the Pac-12.”

Stanford lost its first game of the conference season Thursday, falling 1-0 to Oregon State on the road. UCLA is now alone atop the Pac-12 for the first time this year.

“Our mentality has not changed from the beginning,” Santoyo said. “We feel like we should win this Pac-12, and we feel like we can always win it. Now that we’re at the top, we’re in the driver’s seat. We just need to stay there. We don’t want anyone to knock us off, and we’re going to give it our all to stay on top.”