SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State men’s soccer team closes out the regular season Sunday when they host Air Force for senior day. The match begins at noon and will be streamed on WAC International TV.
Aztec Tidbits
- The Aztecs are undefeated in the WAC and in first place with 19 points and a 6-0-1 record.
- Thursday’s match vs. Utah Valley was postponed and then canceled.
- With an uneven number of matches played across the WAC, seeding for the conference tournament will now be based on points per match.
- SDSU can clinch the WAC regular championship Sunday with a win or draw.
- If the Aztecs lose Sunday, they could also clinch the championship with a Seattle draw or loss vs. Grand Canyon. Seattle kicks off at 1 pm Sunday.
- This would be the Aztecs’ first conference championship in program history.
- Six seniors will be honored prior to Sunday’s match: Jules Anderson, Djibirl Doumbia, Ferran Florencio Catalá, Robbie Matei, Daniel Pacella and André Puente. This group has combined to play in 329 matches and made 245 starts.
- Last week, SDSU earned a 0-0 draw at UTRGV and then won 1-0 at Grand Canyon.
- This was the Aztecs’ third straight shutout and fifth in their seven WAC matches.
- SDSU has clinched a top two seed and a first-round bye in the WAC Tournament. Their next match will be in the semifinals Nov. 13 at Grand Canyon.
- The Aztecs’ nine wins are their most since the 2016 season. With a win Sunday, it would equal their most wins since 2011 (also 10)
- This is the first time in program history that the Aztecs have gone unbeaten in their first seven conference matches. All seven of their WAC matches have been a draw or decided by one goal.
- SDSU is No. 45 in the RPI rankings, 13 spots ahead of the next closest WAC team (Seattle).
- In conference play, SDSU leads the WAC in goals allowed average (0.29) and shutout percentage (0.71).
- SDSU has gone undefeated in five straight road matches (4-0-1) for the first time since 1989.
- The Aztecs are undefeated when scoring first (8-0-2) and undefeated when tied or leading at the half (8-0-3).
- SDSU is No. 2 in the United Soccer Coaches Far West Region poll.
- The Aztecs gave Seattle their first conference loss since the 2022 season on Oct. 17.
- SDSU has won seven matches in a row that were decided by one goal.
- 12 of the Aztecs’ 16 matches have been a draw or been decided by one goal (8-1-3).
- SDSU is 23-11-5 at home since the beginning of the 2021 season.
- 13 different Aztecs have recorded a point this season and 10 have at least two points.
- 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
- 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.
- The Aztecs ended 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.
- SDSU’s adjusted non-conference RPI is No. 15 in the nation. Four of their non-conference opponents have a RPI rank in the top 23.
- San Diego State has lost just four non-conference matches over their last 23 chances (14-4-5) and is 18-2-2 in non-conference home matches under head coach Ryan Hopkins (5th season).
Player Notes
- Djibril Doumbia was named the WAC Offensive Goalkeeper of the Week after posting shutouts at UTRGV and Grand Canyon last week.
- In conference play, Doumbia leads the WAC in goals against average (0.29), shutout percentage (0.71) and save percentage (.900).
- This was the fourth time an Aztec has won a WAC weekly award: Doumbia, Robbie Matei (Offensive, twice) and Beto Apolinar (Defensive, once).
- Center back André Puente was named to Top Drawer Soccer’s National Team of the Week. He played all 180 minutes in SDSU’s two shutouts last week and scored the game-winner at Grand Canyon.
- Before the season, 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 at Long Island and made the All-Northeast Region Team the past two years.
- Terence Okoeguale leads the team with 15 points (5 goals and 5 assists). His five assists are tied for the fourth most in the WAC.
- Robbie Matei leads the Aztecs with six goals and four of them have been game-winners.
- Matei’s four game-winning goals are the second most in the nation.
- Matei, Terence Okoeguale and Austin Brummett all have at least five goals. It’s the first time since 2012 that three Aztecs have had at least five goals.
- All three are in the top nine in the WAC in goals and points.
- Brummett’s 12 points are third on the team.
- Brummett’s 12 goals over the last two seasons are tied for the most by an Aztec over a two-year span since Jeroen Meefout across the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
- Brumett is second in the WAC in shot accuracy (53%) and third in shots on goal per game (1.1).
- 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.
- Rommee Jaridly, a Pac-12 honorable mention selection a year ago, is second on the team lead with four assists. Last year he was second on the team with 13 points (4 goals and 5 assists).
- Three players have started every match for SDSU: Brummett, Fisher and Jaridly.
- Fisher is the only Aztec to play every minute this season.
- Five other Aztecs average at least 75 minutes per match. Beto Apolinar, Tristan Viviani, Jaridly, Israel Carrillo and Brummett.
- Beto Apolinar, the team captain, is second on the team in minutes played (86 per match).
- SDSU has 10 players in their fourth, fifth or sixth year of college.
Opponent Notebook (Air Force)
The Falcons are 1-14-1 and 1-7-0 in the WAC… They are 1-6-1 on the road… Their lone win was at Grand Canyon (2-1)… They have been outscored 42-11… Carter Rizzo leads the team with eight points… Goalkeeper Brody Smith has made six starts, including the last three, and has a goals allowed average of 3.08… Kevin Doyle is their interim head coach. He was previously Air Force’s associate head coach for six years… The Aztecs are 7-6-0 all-time vs. Air Force. This is their first meeting since 2013, a 1-0 Aztec road win in extra time.