SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State men’s soccer team hosts Cal State Bakersfield Saturday at 7 pm. on the SDSU Sports Deck. The match will be streamed on the Pac-12’s YouTube channel.
Aztec Tidbits
- SDSU is coming off a 1-1 draw at Cal Poly.
- Nik Orth scored the Aztecs’ lone goal off a Gio Aguirre cross in the 85th minute only to see the Mustangs score the equalizer 36 seconds later.
- The Aztecs are top 20 in the nation in six offensive statistical categories, including fifth in shots on goal per game (9.50) and 13th in goals (11).
- SDSU is 11th in the nation in shot accuracy (62.3%) and has three players in the top 50 nationally in that statistic: Gio Aguirre, Jaxson Hutcheon and Nik Orth.
- The Aztecs haven’t trailed at halftime in any of their four matches and have only trailed for 36:24 (out of 360:00).
- SDSU has a program record 20 newcomers in 2026 (12 transfers and eight freshmen).
- Through four matches, 15 different Aztecs have started and 11 of them were making their first ever start for SDSU.
- Due to graduation, transfers and injuries, the Aztecs return just 17.8% of their minutes played from last season’s team. This is the fifth fewest in the nation based on a poll conducted amongst DI men’s soccer sports information directors.
- SDSU’s 2026 roster has zero players who scored a goal for SDSU last season and just two players who recorded an assist (Carson Ballagh and Dylan Presto).
- SDSU is 28-18-7 at home since the beginning of the 2021 season.
- The Aztecs have lost just 11 non-conference matches over their last 37 chances (19-11-7) and are 20-7-4 (.710) in non-conference home matches under Ryan Hopkins (7th season), which includes a 20-6-1 (.790) mark on the SDSU Sports Deck.
- SDSU has had a winning record in non-conference play in 10 of the past 12 seasons.
- Since the beginning of the 2024 season, SDSU is 16-2-4 (.818) when scoring first and 17-4-6 (.741) when tied or leading at the half.
- The Aztecs are 8-2-3 in their last 13 road matches.
- SDSU announced the hiring of Carlos Aguilar, who served as the Aztecs’ assistant from 2020-24 before spending last season at LMU.
- SDSU returns to the Pac-12 in 2026, the league they played in from 2005-2023, after spending the last two years in the WAC as an affiliate member.
- The Pac-12 and The Big West jointly announced a collaborative men’s soccer partnership designed to strengthen and sustain Division I men’s soccer opportunities across the western United States. As part of this strategic partnership, California Baptist, Cal Poly, UC Riverside, and UC San Diego will compete as affiliate members in Pac-12 men’s soccer beginning with the 2026 season.
- The Aztecs were picked to finish third in the Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll.
- SDSU lost just two regular season matches in the WAC in their two years (10-2-3) and won the 2024 regular season championship.
Player Notes
- Nik Orth (Cologne, Germany) has scored three goals in the last two matches, the first three goals of his career. His three goals on the season is tied for the 20th in the nation.
- Freshmen Kian McCusker (Birmingham, England) and Gio Aguirre (San Marcos, Calif.) are tied for 12th in the nation with three assists on the year.
- Aguirre leads the team with seven points (two goals and three assists) and his shot accuracy of 75% is tied for 19th in the nation.
- Jaxson Hutcheon (Laguna Beach, Calif.) is top 30 in the nation in shots on goal per game (T-18th, 2.0) and shot accuracy (T-27th, 72.7%)
- Aguirre’s six points are tied for the 12th most in the nation.
- Aguirre has put six of his eight shots on frame. He is one of eight players in the nation who have a shot on goal percentage of at least 75% while attempting at least eight shots.
- Aguirre scored both of SDSU’s goals vs. Navy Aug. 23 to become the first Aztec freshman to score two goals in a match since 2022 (CJ Fodrey).
- Carson Ballagh, Jonah Kawamura and Oscar Emilio Trujillo Lizárraga were named to the Pac-12 Preseason Impact List. That trio will serve as team captains this year.
- Ballagh (Lake Orion, Mich.) tied for the team lead with four assists last year. He had five the previous season while at Oakland University.
- Kawamura (Honolulu, Hawai’i) came to The Mesa last year but missed the entire season with an injury. He was a three-year starter and captain at UC San Diego and led the Tritons in minutes twice.
- Trujillo Lizárraga is a San Diego native who played at West Virginia last year and at UC Riverside in 2024. He helped the Mountaineers make the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season and was named to the Big West All-Freshman Team the year prior. He was named a “Player to Watch” in the Pac-12 by Top Drawer Soccer.
- Goalkeeper Nic Diana (Grayslake, Ill.) finished first in the Horizon League in total saves (75) and saves per game (4.17) while at the UW Milwaukee last season.
- Mattia Boldrini (Florence, Italy) was named to the NEC Conference Top 11 Rookie of the Year Team as a freshman at Le Moyne College last season. He scored the game-winner in SDSU’s preseason friendly vs. Point Loma last Saturday.
- Cedric Ngounou (Mississauga, Ontario) was named a Canadian “Player to Watch” by Canada’s Rising Ballers. He won League 1 Defender of the Year while playing for Borough FC in the Ontario Premier League last season.
- Yahir Ocampo Navarro was named a United Soccer Coaches DII First Team All-American and the GNAC Player of the Year while at Western Oregon last year. He tallied 53 points (18 goals and 17 assists) in three years at WOU.
- Trevor Wilson (Kirkland Wash.) and Dylan Presto (Los Angeles) are the only Aztecs who have been in the program three or more years.
Opponent Notebook (Cal State Bakersfield)
The Roadrunners are 1-1-1 on the year… They tied at UCLA 1-1 on Aug. 24 and then lost to UNLV at home 2-1… They went 3-11-3 last year… They return 15 players and five starters and were picked to finish sixth in the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll… Filip Arras and Zenden Hart were on the Big West Preseason Coaches Team… Hart has a 0.50 goals allowed average in his two matches…Head coach Adam Grant is in his fourth season… The Aztecs are 8-1-0 all-time against the Roadrunners. They most recently played in 2023, a 1-0 SDSU win.
Coach Hopkins’ Take
“Bakersfield will provide a good challenge for our group as they have several players thaT can really hurt you, especially in transition moments. We will have to execute and be sharp with our movements organization and ball possession to secure the three points.”