The San Jose State men’s soccer team suffered a disappointing 0-0 tie that led to a 3-1 loss in penalty shootouts against California Baptist University during the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament championship Sunday afternoon at the CBU Soccer Stadium in Riverside, California. 

The two teams clashed in a defensive and equilibrate competition where 110 minutes of play were not enough to break the tie. 

SJSU junior forward Isaac Lomeli said he was extremely disappointed after the game. 

“Losing a final is the worst a footballer can feel,” Lomeli said. “You look back and see what this team has done this year and to end it off like leaves us disappointed.” 

SJSU junior forward Ryota Nakashima, who recently displayed positive performances after his ankle injury, said it will be difficult to get over the championship loss. 

“It’s disappointing how it ended and it’s not easy to get over,” Nakashima said. “But no matter what, we fought and died together.” 

Sunday’s loss was a dramatic conclusion for the Spartans, which came after an exciting 4-0 win in the semifinals against Seattle University.
Although SJSU gained confidence throughout the semifinal, the WAC Tournament final game was more complex because of the defensive mentality that the Lancers put in place. 

During the initial part of the game, SJSU showcased strong ball possession while CBU waited for the ball in their half of the pitch to attack with fast counterattacks.
At Minute 33, Lancers forward Luis Mueller blocked the Spartans’ offensive, intercepting the ball in the CBU side of the pitch.
Mueller accelerated and dribbled past SJSU senior defenders Eduardo Miranda and Kasper Poulsgaard, before delivering a back pass to defender David Cordes at the edge of the box. 

Cordes charged his right foot and kicked the ball toward the goal, where SJSU senior goalkeeper David Sweeney was well-placed and managed to block the shot.
At Minute 40, the Spartans built up an impressive play with freshman defender Gaku Nishimura passing the ball to freshman midfielder Angel Iniguez who quickly exhibited a sliding pass to sophomore midfielder Diego Delgadillo. 

Delgadillo evaded the CBU defender and ran toward the opponents box, cutting to the center where the Lancers’ defense took him down with a foul. 

At the beginning of the second half, the Spartans built an offensive play with sophomore midfielder Beau Leroux, who tried a long shot from 18 yards that CBU goalkeeper Nolan Premack blocked after an insidious ball bounce.
At Minute 61, Nishimura cutted inside the Lancers’ box, managing to pass the ball to Lomeli who eluded the defender, delivering an accurate shot toward the CBU goal that Premack pushed back after a dive.
Lomeli said he thought that play was a great opportunity.
“As soon as I saw Gaku coming toward me and looking up, I knew the ball was coming to me,” Lomeli said. “When I got the ball he continued his run and the player thought I would give it back to him but I opened up and I knew the shot was on.”
Despite the numerous goal opportunities, the second half of the game ended with a static 0-0.
After a short break, the two teams got back on pitch for the overtime.
At Minute 94, the Spartans obtained a free kick on the right side of the center circle. 

While players gathered in the Lancers’ box, Iniguez tried to surprise everybody shooting on goal with a powerful shot that the CBU goalkeeper pushed a few inches above the crossbar. 

During the overtime, Miranda was the protagonist of multiple fundamental tackles that stopped the Lancers’ offense.
After 20 minutes of overtime, the tie remained and the two teams prepared for the penalty shootout. 

The first SJSU penalty shot was made by senior midfielder Finlay Wood, who charged his left foot and delivered the ball to the left side where Premack pushed it outside the goal.
CBU forward Bryan Iliohan managed to beat David Sweeney making it 1-0.
The second penalty for the Spartans was scored by Poulsgaard who delivered a strong strike on the right of the CBU goalkeeper, getting back the team on 1-1. 

After the Lancers scored their second penalty, Anthony Guzman missed the third penalty for SJSU, shooting the ball above the crossbar. The score was 2-1.
The last chance for the Spartans was after the Lancers realized their third penalty was on SJSU senior midfielder Herminio Padilla.
Padilla took a few steps back, looked at Premack in front of him and charged his left foot.
The ball ended up above the crossbar, declaring the end of the game and celebrating CBU as first-time WAC champions.
SJSU junior defender Joel Garcia said it was unfortunate to miss the win after the penalty shootout.
“Looking back at the season, I think that there is nothing to be sorry about,” Garcia said. “I feel the program stayed true to the system, created better people on and off the pitch and most definitely created better soccer players.” 

He also said he thinks the memories that were created with the team will most definitely overcome the negative season ending. 

Nakashima said he cannot think about the new season because he still needs to get over the disappointing final even if the team will come back to overcome the negative experience.
“We’re a family,” Nakashima said. “I’m so grateful to be a part of this program.”