SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State men’s soccer team hosts UNLV Sunday night at 7 p.m. The match will be streamed on WAC International and admission to the match is free.
Aztec Tidbits
- The Aztecs are coming off a 1-0 loss to Grand Canyon in their WAC home opener. The Aztecs outshot the ‘Lopes 11-8, but GCU scored in the second minute.
- This was SDSU’s first conference loss since joining the WAC last year.
- This was the fourth time the Aztecs have lost despite outshooting their opponent.
- The Aztecs are averaging 5.92 corner kicks per match, the third most in the WAC and 40th most in the nation. The Aztecs have had more corner kicks than their opponents in nine of their 12 matches.
- Half of SDSU’s matches have been decided by one goal, yet the Aztecs have no ties.
- San Diego State is 7-2-1 in their last 10 road matches.
- Since the beginning of the 2024 season, SDSU is 13-1-2 when scoring first and 14-2-3 when tied or leading at the half.
- The Aztecs are 26-16-5 (.606) at home since the beginning of the 2021 season.
- This is just the second time in the last 12 years that SDSU didn’t have a winning record in non-conference play.
- San Diego State has shown incredible depth this season. 20 different Aztecs have already started a match. No field player averages more than 80 minutes per match, and no one has started more than 10 of SDSU’s 12 matches.
- SDSU had a conference-high three players named to the preseason All-WAC Team, as chosen by the league’s coaches. Cianole Nguepissi was named the Preseason Defender of the Year and Terence Okoeguale and Tristan Viviani made the preseason All-WAC Team.
- SDSU had two players named a “Midfielder to Watch” by the United Soccer Coaches: Okoeguale and Carson Ballagh, a transfer from Oakland University.
- According to Top Drawer Soccer, the Aztecs have the 26th best incoming class in 2025 and the sixth best on the West Coast.
- SDSU has 12 newcomers (5 freshmen and 7 transfers). Five of their seven transfers were all-conference honorees at their previous school.
- The Aztecs won the WAC regular season championship last year, the program’s first conference championship in school history. SDSU went undefeated (7-0-1) in the WAC in conference play and shut out their opponents in six of their eight WAC matches.
- SDSU’s 10 wins in 2024 were their most since 2011.
- Head coach Ryan Hopkins was named the WAC Coach of the Year last season.
- The Aztecs were picked to finish first in the WAC in the preseason coaches poll.
- SDSU has lost just 10 non-conference matches over their last 33 chances (18-10-5) and is 19-6-2 (.714) in non-conference home matches under Ryan Hopkins (6th season), which includes an 19-5-0 (.791) mark on the SDSU Sports Deck.
- SDSU has been nationally ranked at one point in three of the last four seasons.
- Defender Reid Fisher was selected by Toronto FC with the 23rd overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft in December. He became the third Aztec to be drafted in the last three years, and second in the first round, joining CJ Fodrey (13th overall) and Blake Bowen (59th) who were both selected in the 2022 SuperDraft.
Player Notes
- Juan Zepeda (Guadalajara, Mexico) has scored the game-winning goal in each of SDSU’s last two wins. He leads the team in goals (4), points (8), shots (28) and shots on goal (12).
- Terence Okoeguale (Cologne, Germany) made his first appearance at Air Force Oct. 4 since Sept. 1. He assisted two of SDSU’s goals, including the game-winner, in just 26 minutes of action.
- Okoeguale (Cologne, Germany) was named a “Midfielder to Watch” by the United Soccer Coaches and was on the Preseason All-WAC Team. Last season he led the Aztecs with 17 points (6 goals & 5 assists) and was named to the All-WAC First Team and to the United Soccer Coaches Far West All-Region Second-Team.
- Carson Ballagh (Lake Orion, Mich.) joined Okoeguale on the “Midfielder to Watch” List. Last season as a sophomore at Oakland University he was named to the All-Horizon First Team and United Soccer Coaches All-North Region Third-Team after dishing out a league-high five assists in conference play. Ballagh helped Oakland win the Horizon League regular championship both years he was there and was named to the Horizon League All-Tournament Team on both occasions.
- Eddy Vargas (Yakima, Wash.) won his first WAC Goalkeeper of the Week after shutting out Cal State Fullerton Sept. 27 and collecting 11 saves. It was his fourth career shutout and his previous single match high was five saves.
- Defender Christian Engmann (Seattle, Wash.) has scored the game-winning goal in three of SDSU’s five wins. His three game-winning goals are tied for the eighth most in the nation.
- Lleyton Imparato (Tampa Bay, Fla.) and Carson Ballagh are tied for the team lead with three assists.
- Imparato was the AAC Co-Midfielder of the Year last season at Memphis.
- Cianole Nguepissi (Birmingham, England) was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Last year he made the WAC All-Freshman Team after starting every WAC match and helping SDSU post six clean sheets in their eight conference matches.
- Tristan Viviani (Redwood City, Calif.) was also named to the Preseason All-WAC Team.
- Rommee Jaridly (Chino Hills, Calif.) and Beto Apolinar (Los Angeles) are both four-year starters in their fifth year with the program.
- Apolinar and goalkeeper Vargas are the 2025 team captains. It’s the third year Apolinar has been selected as captain.
- Apolinar and Engmann helped lead Ballard FC to the USL 2 Championship match over the summer.
- Transfers Baptiste Boit (Oral Roberts), Stephan Moreira (SIU Edwardsville), Juan Zepeda (Temple) and Imparato (Memphis) were all-conference honorees at their previous school. Imparato (Tampa Bay, Fla.) was named the 2024 AAC Co-Midfielder of the Year and Moreira was the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Year.
- SDSU has 12 seniors and seven of them are in their fifth, sixth (Engmann) or seventh (Vargas) year.
Opponent Notebook (UNLV)
The Rebels are 3-4-4 on the year and they have earned draws in their first two WAC matches… They are 0-3-2 on the road… They have scored just seven goals while allowing 14… They have been outshot 160-82… Goalkeeper Hugo Lemos has a goals allowed average of 1.27 and has four shutouts… Head coach BJ Craig is in his fourth season at UNLV… The Aztecs are 23-11-6 all-time vs. UNLV.