MEN'S SOCCER: Aztecs playing for pride after two home victories

With just two games to go in a season lost to injuries and inconsistencies, the San Diego State men’s soccer team won’t be playing for a title or a tournament birth the rest of the season. Instead, SDSU will turn its attention to playing for perhaps an athlete’s greatest motivational tool: pride.

“A bunch of guys on this team come from a winning background; they’re not used to losing,” junior defender Nick Cardenas said. “We’re playing for ourselves in these final weeks. We don’t feel we get a lot of respect around the Pac-10, and our preseason ranking was a slap in the face. We’re going to go out there and prove people wrong.”

With their backs against the wall, the Aztecs are playing perhaps their best soccer of the season. SDSU (5-8-3, 3-3-3 in Pac-10 play) is coming off a weekend home sweep of Stanford and No. 7 California. The team will host Cal State Bakersfield (4-11-0) in a non-conference match at 1 p.m. on Sunday at the SDSU Sports Deck.

“All we can go off of is last season,” Cardenas said of last year’s 2-0 victory over the Roadrunners. “If we just go out and play our game we’ll have success.”

The biggest turnaround for the team has been the improved back line. Despite playing most of the season with a patchwork defense, the team has allowed more than two goals only once in its past 15 games.

“With so many players interchanging it’s always hard, but we’ve finally found a cohesive group in the last four games,” Cardenas said. “We’re almost always on the same page.”

Last weekend that stellar defense was the key ingredient in the Aztecs’ success. SDSU beat a powerful Golden Bear attack 1-0, riding a shutout from senior goalkeeper Jorge Rosales.

 “It always feels good to beat a ranked team,” Cardenas said. “But it feels that much better when it’s a team in our own conference.”

When asked about the significance of playing a non-conference opponent late in the season, Cardenas was short and to the point.

“It’s not so much looking at (this game) differently,” he said. “It’s just a chance for another win to build upon next year. The more momentum, the better for the future.”

At a glance
When: 1p.m., Sunday
Where: SDSU Sports Deck
Why to watch: The Aztecs will try to maintain momentum against CSU Bakersfield.

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