SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State men’s soccer team begins WAC play when they travel to Las Vegas to face UNLV Thursday evening at 8 p.m. The game will be streamed on WAC International TV, which is free but requires an account.
Aztec Tidbits
- The Aztecs closed out non-conference play with a 2-0 loss at UC Irvine last Saturday.
- SDSU will play at Utah Tech Sunday afternoon at 12:30 pm PT. The Trailblazers host California Baptist Thursday evening.
- The Aztecs end non-conference play with a 3-4-2 record, their first time having a losing record in non-conference play since 2013. SDSU had gone undefeated in their non-conference slate in two of the previous three years.
- San Diego State has lost just four non-conference matches over their last 23 chances (14-4-5).
- The Aztecs lead the WAC in assists (15), assists per game (1.67), and corner kicks per game (5.89).
- San Diego State is third in the WAC in goals (13).
- 12 different Aztecs have recorded a point this season and eight have at least two points.
- The Aztecs have used a different starting lineup in each of their last eight matches.
- After playing their first five matches in San Diego (and four at home), six of SDSU’s next seven matches are on the road.
- The Aztecs will be competing in the WAC as an affiliate member this year following the demise of the Pac-12. SDSU, who played in the Pac-12 for the past 19 years, played in the WAC from 1996-98. The WAC has sent multiple teams to the NCAA tournament in five of the last seven years.
- SDSU’s match vs UC Davis on Sept. 21 at Snapdragon Stadium set a program record for attendance with 3,802 fans. All three of SDSU’s games at Snapdragon Stadium have resulted in new school records for attendance.
- In that match, the Aztecs scored their first goal just 16 seconds into the match which is believed to be the quickest goal in a game in school history.
- SDSU is 18-2-2 in non-conference home matches under head coach Ryan Hopkins (5th season).
- The Aztecs are 21-11-5 at home since the beginning of the 2021 season.
- SDSU has shut out their opponents in seven of their last 12 home non-conference matches.
- The Aztecs were picked to finish third in the WAC Preseason Coaches poll, trailing Seattle and California Baptist.
- SDSU’s five goals against UC Riverside in their season opener tied for their most vs. a DI opponent in the Ryan Hopkins era (5th season).
- The Aztecs’ loss at San Diego Aug. 26 snapped a stretch of 14 non-conference matches without a loss (11-0-3).
- San Diego State has been in the national rankings in two of the last three seasons.
- Last season was the first since 2012 that SDSU had four players with at least 10 points. Three of those players return: Austin Brummett (17), Rommee Jaridly (13) and Terence Okoeguale (10).
Player Notes
- Rommee Jaridly, a Pac-12 honorable mention selection a year ago, leads the WAC with four assists. Last year he was second on the team with 13 points (4 goals and 5 assists).
- Austin Brummett, who was named to the Preseason All-WAC Team, leads the WAC in shot accuracy (57%), is second in shots on goal per game (1.4) and third in shots per game (2.6).
- Brummett’s four goals are tied for third in the WAC.
- Terence Okoeguale’s team-high nine points (3 goals and 3 assists) are tied for the fourth most in the WAC.
- Forward Robbie Matei, a transfer from American University, was named the WAC Offensive Player of the Week last week after scoring a goal and dishing out an assist vs. UC Davis. He was a Patriot League Second Team selection in each of the last two seasons. He is tied for second on the team with three goals.
- Goalkeeper Djibril Doumbia made his fifth start of the season at UC Irvine last weekend. Doumbia is in his sixth year of college and was a three-year starter at Old Dominion.
- Goalkeeper Eddy Vargas, a transfer from Vermont who also is in his sixth year of college, has started four matches and has a 0.93 goals allowed average.
- Long Island transfer André Puente was named a “Defender to Watch” by the United Soccer Coaches, one of 16 players to be highlighted. Puente has been an All-NEC First Team selection each of the past three seasons and made the All-Northeast Region Team the past two years.
- Redshirt sophomore defender Reid Fisher was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and a Freshman All-American (College Soccer News) last season.
- Both Puente and Fisher were named top 100 players in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer in the preseason.
- Fisher was tabbed the WAC Preseason Defender of the Year by the league’s coaches.
- Midfielder Daniel Pacella, one of two transfers from Vermont, made the America East Second Team twice and was the league’s Rookie of the Year in 2020-21.
- Three players have started every match for SDSU: Brummett, Fisher and Jaridly.
- Fisher is the only Aztec to play every minute this season.
- Four other Aztecs have played at least 600 minutes this year (70/match): Beto Apolinar, Tristan Viviani, Jaridly, Brummett and Israel Carrillo.
- Beto Apolinar, the team captain, has started at three different positions this season: center back, defensive midfield and center midfield. He is second on the team in minutes played (83 per match).
- Ferran Florencio Catalá scored the game-winning goal vs. Sacramento State Sept. 6. It was the first career collegiate goal for the 24-year-old forward from Spain.
- The Aztecs return three of their top four leaders in points from a season ago, including Brummett, who had a team-high 17 points (7 goals and 3 assists).
- SDSU has 10 players in their fourth, fifth or sixth year of college.
- The Aztecs return nine letterwinners and six starters. 10 returners started at least one match last season.
- SDSU has 13 newcomers (seven transfers and six freshmen).
Opponent Notebook (UNLV)
The Rebels are 3-5-0 on the year and 2-2-0 at home… They have allowed seven goals across their last two games (both losses)… They have three shutouts on the year… They have been outscored 17-12 on the year and outshot 114-73… Nico Lopez and Gabe Sanchez are tied for the team lead with six points… Goalkeeper Hugo Lemos has a goals allowed average of 2.31… Head coach BJ Craig is in his third season as UNLV’s head coach… The Aztecs are 22-11-6 all-time vs UNLV. They last played Sept. 9, 2022, a 5-0 SDSU win.
Coach Hopkins’ Take on the Upcoming Weekend
“We are excited to embark upon our season in the WAC and know there will be some challenges ahead. We hope we can get conference play off to the right start with two big results in places that are difficult to play.”