Rebels begin WAC playoff drive with a win over Aztecs

Steve Carp

Monday, Oct. 20, 1997 | 11:20 a.m.

The phrase "must-win" doesn't enter the lexicon of the UNLV soccer program very often. But with the Western Athletic Conference season under way and the chase for one of four berths in the WAC championship next month a wide-open affair, coach Barry Barto saw Sunday's 4-0 victory at Peter Johann Field over San Diego State as such.

"We've got three straight WAC home games and we need to win them all," Barto said. "This was a good start."

Two UNLV goals in a 1:13 span in the first half by senior forward Mike Griego and sophomore defender Rob Delgado gave the Rebels a comfortable 2-0 lead by intermission. But it was Darek Rensing's goal in the 52nd minute that was the key.

Rensing, a 6-foot senior from St. Louis who has been moved out of midfield to the front line, ran onto goalie Dan Abdalla's long kick, beat a defender, then slipped the ball underneath Aztecs' 'keeper Matt Hall to put it out of reach at 3-0.

The Rebels, who improved to 2-1 in conference play, 5-7-1 overall, also received a second goal from Griego in the 62nd minute as he corralled Rensing's blast that caromed off the left post and deposited the ball into an empty net. Griego's five-point game (he assisted on Delgado's goal) put him back atop the UNLV scoring chart with 11 points.

"Two goals is always a problem," Barto said of the 2-0 lead his team enjoyed at the interval. "But the third is the killer. We needed that third goal and we got it.

"Darek hadn't been giving us what we thought he could from the outside, so we moved him up front and he has done a great job the last few games. He's working hard and making things happen."

The Rebels are starting to find the net with more regularity than earlier in the season.

"That's the key," Barto said. "We're scoring goals and we're getting them from a lot of different people. It's not just one person carrying us."

The Aztecs, who fell to 1-2 in the WAC, 6-4-3 overall, have that problem. Senior forward Raja Hawa, who leads the team with five goals and 11 points, had few good looks at the UNLV goal thanks to the marking of defenders Todd Roberts and Geoff Barto.

"We both watched him," said the younger Barto. "We didn't really do anything special."

Instead, it was another solid collective effort in the back as Abdalla recorded his third shutout. His younger brother Todd finished up for the final 15 minutes to preserve the blanking.

Barto was concerned how his team would react to the week-long layoff. But seeing the way the Rebels responded Sunday, he feels good about the upcoming week, which includes WAC home matches at 7 p.m. Friday vs. San Jose State and noon Sunday against Fresno State.

"We need to win these games at home," he said. "If we win, we play at home again (in the WAC tournament)."

UNLV SOCCER