No. 21 Marshall men’s soccer closes out West Coast trip with victory over San Diego State

Marshall University’s men soccer’s redshirt freshman Milo Yosef scored two of the Herd’s five goals against San Diego State University on Friday evening to secure dominance with a final score of 5-1.

Yosef’s two goals for the Herd tallied his total to 10 on the season. This is the second consecutive game that he scored two goals, previously against Loyola Marymount. It’s been eight years since a Marshall player has scored 10 goals in a season, following Tom Jackson in 2011.

The Herd earned its 10th win of the season and improved its record to 10-1-2 overall.

The Aztecs dropped its fourth straight contest and lowered its record to 3-8-1 on the season.

“We started quite slow, but to be fair, the pitch took a minute to get used to; it was fast, narrow and very slick,” Marshall Head Coach Chris Grassie said per HerdZone. “We settled down and were excellent, and by the second half we had a strangle hold on the match.”

Four of the five goals scored by Marshall did not occur until the second half.

In the 29th minute, sophomore defender Jan-Erik Leinhos scored the first goal after Yosef was tripped in the box, resulting in a penalty kick. Then, in the 31st minute, San Diego State scored, tying the game 1-1 going into halftime. That goal was the only goal allowed by redshirt senior Paulo Pita.

Following halftime, sophomore forward Vitor Dias scored the Herd’s second goal in the 48th minute with a pass from sophomore forward/midfielder Joao Souza.

In the 67th minute, Yosef found the back of the net with an assist from senior midfielder Jonas Westmeyer to put the Herd up 3-1 over the Aztecs. In the 75th minute, Yosef scored again off an assist from junior midfielder Pedro Dolabella.

Pita recorded his second save of the game in the 77th minute. Following his save, San Diego State scored an own goal, putting the Herd up 5-1 in the 78th minute.

“We dominated possession in the second half, and we looked dangerous every time we went forward,” Grassie said per HerdZone. “I thought Vitor (Dias) did an awesome job transitioning from defense to attack, and Milo (Yosef) was deadly again tonight.”

The Herd returns to the east coast to continue its road game streak with a trip to Dayton, Ohio to face Wright State on Oct. 22. First kick is set for 7 p.m.

“A great trip out to the west coast. We learned a lot about ourselves,” Grassie said per HerdZone. “Now we’re looking forward to getting back to Huntington for a few days before Wright State.”

Taylor Huddleston can be contacted at [email protected].