SAN DIEGO – The Aztec men's soccer team will be in action Friday night when they host UC Irvine on the SDSU Sports Deck at 6 p.m. for a friendly. This will be the first of two preseason tune-ups for the Aztecs before they officially kick off the season August 24th at Denver.
Aztec Tidbits
- The Aztecs have 10 newcomers in 2023 with six transfers and four freshmen. Top Drawer Soccer ranked SDSU as having the 14th best incoming class in the country. SDSU was rated as the best incoming class a year ago.
- Of the six transfers joining SDSU, four are fifth-year seniors, one is a fourth-year senior and another is a junior. In total, the Aztecs have 10 players in their fourth or fifth year.
- The Aztecs also have eight players who are true or redshirt freshmen.
- SDSU had 15 players playing in the USL League Two over the summer. Nine of them played for clubs that made the playoffs including Christian Engmann, a transfer from Saint Mary's, who won the championship with Ballard FC.
- Defender Noah Crétier and midfielder Tristan Viviani, who were part of the heralded 2022 recruiting class, were named Top 75 freshmen in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer last season.
- MidfielderBeto Apolinar was listed as a Pac-12 Breakout Player by Top Drawer Soccer.
- Midfielder Henry Smith-Hastie, along with Apolinar, is one of two returners that played in all 18 matches a season ago.
- Forward Alexander Levengood, a four-year starter and three-time All-CAA First-Team selection at William & Mary, led the nation in shot accuracy last year (.659). He tallied 62 points on 24 goals and 14 assists across 58 matches at William & Mary.
- Defender Reid Sproat was named to the All-Horizon League three times in his four years at Oakland University.
- After the season opener at Denver, the Aztecs will play eight straight home matches, which is the longest streak of consecutive home games in the program's 55-year history.
- SDSU recently hired Adrian Dubois as an assistant coach. He comes from Vermont who made the Elite Eight and finished No. 4 in the country last year. Dubois was tabbed as one of the top 12 assistant coaches in the country by College Soccer News.
- The Aztecs are two wins away from their 500th victory in program history (498-384-121).
- Following last season five Aztecs signed professional contracts, believed to be the most in program history. CJ Fodrey, the Top Drawer National Freshman of the Year, became the highest selection in the MLS SuperDraft in school history when Austin FC drafted him No. 13 overall. Blake Bowen (Seattle Sounders), Jacob Castro (Seattle Sounders), Kyle Colonna (New Mexico United) and Elias Katsaros (Tacoma Defiance) also moved to the professionals ranks.
Aztecs Host UC Irvine in Preseason Friendly Friday
