LA JOLLA, Calif. – Winners in three of its last four matches, the UC San Diego men's soccer team hits the road this week for a pair of Big West contests. The Tritons will visit Cal Poly on Wednesday night and CSUN on Saturday. Both matches kick at 7 p.m.
 
DETAILS
Match 10
UC San Diego (4-5-0, 1-1-0 Big West) at Cal Poly (3-4-2, 1-0-1 Big West)
Wednesday, October 6
7:00 p.m.
Alex G. Spanos Stadium, San Luis Obispo, Calif
Live Video | Live Stats
Series Record: First Meeting
Last Meeting: N/A
 
Match 11
UC San Diego (4-5-0, 1-1-0 Big West) at CSUN (1-10-2, 0-2-0 Big West)
Saturday, October 9
7:00 p.m.
Matador Soccer Field, Northridge, Calif.
Live Stats
Series Record: CSUN leads, 2-1-0
Last Meeting: CSUN 3, UC San Diego 1 (1988)

ABOUT THE TRITONS
Roster | Schedule | Stats
Overall: 4-5-0
Big West: 1-1-0
Home: 2-2-0
Away: 2-3-0
Neutral: 0-0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0-0
Streak: W1

TRITONS, STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Stat	UCSD	Opp.
Goals	14	8
Goals/Game	1.56	0.89
Shots	97	111
Shots/Game	10.8	12.3
Shots on Goal	44	52
Corner Kicks	30	42
YC-RC-Fouls	10-0-93	24-0-109
PKs (Goals)	1 (1)	0 (0)

ABOUT THE MUSTANGS
Roster | Schedule | Stats
Overall: 3-4-2
Big West: 1-0-1
Home: 2-1-1
Away: 1-3-1
Neutral: 0-0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-2-0
Streak: W1

ABOUT THE MATADORS
Roster | Schedule | Stats
Overall: 1-10-0
Big West: 0-2-0
Home: 1-4-0
Away: 0-6-0
Neutral: 0-0-0
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-1-0
Streak: L3

UC SAN DIEGO AND COVID-19
UC San Diego's nationally renowned Return to Learn program was created to return to in-person teaching, learning, conducting pioneering research and serving our communities in the safest way possible. The program has three adaptive pillars that are central to our strategy to resume on-campus activity: risk mitigation, viral detection, and intervention.

For the latest information on UC San Diego and COVID-19, please visit the University's Return to Learn site.

ATTENDING THE MATCHES
Per the current COVID-19 guidelines set by the state of California, the County of San Diego and the Big West Conference, fans are permitted to attend home games at Triton Soccer Stadium. However, all fans are required to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test within the last 48 hours. All fans must wear a mask covering their nose and mouth at all times and food is not permitted inside the stadium. For more information, click here.
 
Admission to UC San Diego home soccer matches is free, but parking permits are required seven days per week on campus. For UC San Diego Parking information, click here.

GAME DAY HAS A NEW LOOK
Triton fans now have a whole new way to access game day information, as game programs have gone digital! Fans can visit UCSDTritons.com/MSgameday from their smart phone or scan the QR code at the entrance to Triton Soccer Stadium for everything they need to know about each home game, including updated rosters, schedules, and stats for each team, as well as links to watch on ESPN+.

COVERING THE TRITONS
Media members wishing to cover a UC San Diego match in-person at Triton Soccer Stadium this season must notify a member of the Athletics Communication staff no later than 10 a.m. on gameday. All media members will need to complete a UC San Diego symptom screening form on the day of the match prior to arriving on campus.

Following the conclusion of each home contest, a video highlight melt and video postgame interviews will be made available for media members to download.

ON THE MOVE
After 20 seasons playing as an NCAA Division II team, the entire athletics program has begun a four-year transition to NCAA Division I, culminating in full DI status as a member of the Big West Conference for the 2024-25 academic year. At that time, all sports will be eligible for conference and NCAA postseason play.

LONG-AWAITED DEBUT
The 2021 season marks the Triton soccer programs' first in Division I. The Big West Conference canceled the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

LAST TIME OUT
Three different Tritons found the back of the net as the UC San Diego men's soccer team earned its first-ever Big West Conference win with a convincing 3-1 victory over Cal State Fullerton Saturday night inside Triton Soccer Stadium.
 
BRYAN EARNS RECOGNITION
Senior defender Jonah Bryan scored his second goal of the season as the Tritons downed Cal State Fullerton for the program's first-ever Big West win (Oct. 2). Bryan was recognized on Monday as a UCSDTritons.com Athlete of the Week.

Congratulations to Jonah and Emily, our USE Credit Union Athletes of the Week! ?? ??

Read ?? https://t.co/JJZsQyd4Lc pic.twitter.com/pk5k6HVRgO

— UC San Diego Tritons (@UCSDtritons) October 4, 2021

 
SABBAGH SHINES IN HISTORIC WIN
UC San Diego received a pair of second half goals from Omar Sabbagh, and the Tritons defense posted a clean sheet in a 2-0 men's soccer victory at San José State (Sept. 16). The win was UC San Diego's first over a Division I opponent.
 
BIG WEST HONORS TRITON PAIR
Following the Tritons' historic 2-0 win at San José State, a pair of UC San Diego men's soccer players were recognized with Big West weekly awards. Goalkeeper Dominic Peters was named Big West Defensive Player of the Week, and forward Omar Sabbagh was named the conference's Freshman of the Week.
 
SABBAGH STRIKES TWICE
Sabbagh was also recognized as a UCSDTritons.com Athlete of the Week (Sept. 20) after scoring his first two collegiate goals in the win over the Spartans.
 
SPREADING THE LOVE
Six different Tritons scored in UC San Diego's 6-0 shutout of Marymount on Sept. 3. In that match, three Tritons scored their first UC San Diego goal: Mason Haubrich, Carter Jacobus, and Jonah Bryan. In addition, it was the most goals UC San Diego has scored in a match since a 6-0 win over Saint Martin's in 2016.
 
GAME WINNERS

Date	Opponent	GWG Scorer	Minute	Final Score
Sept. 3	Marymount	Mason Haubrich	9'	6-0
Sept. 16	at San José St.	Omar Sabbagh	72'	2-0
Sept. 22	at San Diego	Cooper Lachenbruch	67'	2-1
Oct. 2	Cal State Fullerton	Nick Cirrito	59'	3-1

 
CIRRITO CREATES MILESTONE MOMENT
Tritons senior Nick Cirrito scored UC San Diego's first Division I goal when he scored from the top of the box in the 66th minute at UNLV (Aug. 29). The following day, he was recognized as a UCSDTritons.com Athlete of the Week.
 
STRONG START
UC San Diego's defense held strong out of the gates. The Tritons have surrendered just two first half goals so far this season (Sept. 6 at Portland, Sept. 29 vs. UC Davis).
 
MAKING THE STOP
As of Oct. 4, UC San Diego leads the Big West in save percentage at .857. Triton goalkeepers Dominic Peters and Nick Shor have combined for 48 saves through the team's first nine matches. Peters has started all nine matches for the Tritons and leads the Big West in save percentage at .849.
 
GOING POLLING
Heading into their first year in the Big West, the Tritons were picked ninth with 30 points in the preseason conference coaches poll. UC Davis and UC Santa Barbara sit atop the poll in a first-place tie.
 
READY TO ROLL
Prior to the Tritons' season opener at Dixie State (Aug. 26), it had been 645 days since the team last competed. The Tritons took part in the 2019 NCAA Division II tournament, facing Midwestern State (Texas) on Nov. 21, 2019. Before the Dixie State match, UC San Diego hadn't played a regular season match since Nov. 2, 2019. Both the 2019 regular season finale as well as the 2019 NCAA Tournament match took place on the campus of Cal State Los Angeles.
 
WEST COAST COMFORT
Although UC San Diego plays in the Big West Conference, the Tritons familiarized themselves with the West Coast Conference (WCC) this season. Three of UC San Diego's non-conference matches last month were against WCC foes: at Portland (Sept. 6), vs. Santa Clara (Sept. 11), and at San Diego (Sept. 22). The Tritons also scrimmaged WCC champ Loyola Marymount during the preseason.

HEAD COACH JON PASCALE
Jon Pascale, a three-time CCAA Coach of the Year (2012, 2013, 2016), has posted a 134-66-40 (.642) record to date in his 14th year in charge of the UC San Diego men's soccer program. The Tritons have posted nine straight campaigns with an overall record of .500 or better.
 
PREMIER DEFENSE
UC San Diego has developed a reputation under head coach Jon Pascale of being a strong defensive unit and ranked in the top 17 nationally in the NCAA Division II in team goals-against average in six of the program's last seven seasons at that level. In 2019, UC San Diego posted a streak of 492 minutes, two seconds without allowing a goal, and the Tritons posted nine clean sheets that season.
 
HOME SUCCESS
Including the postseason, UC San Diego is 87-28-18 (.722) at Triton Soccer Stadium under Jon Pascale.
 
TRITON SOCCER STADIUM GETS A NEW LOOK
While the team was unable to compete last year because of the pandemic, Triton Soccer Stadium underwent a renovation to prepare for Division I. The venue now features 663 blue fixed seats, a brand-new Triton-gold press box, ADA and companion seating, and new international-style field side signage.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Following this week's road matches, the Tritons will return to La Jolla to face UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 13. That match will kick at 6 p.m. PT on ESPN+.
 
UC SAN DIEGO ON THE WORLDWIDE LEADER
Most UC San Diego home men's and women's basketball games, men's and women's soccer matches, men's and women's volleyball matches, baseball and softball games are broadcast live on ESPN+. For more information on where to watch UC San Diego soccer, visit UCSDTritons.com/live.
 
UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETICS LAUNCHES WEEKLY PODCAST
As part of UC San Diego's transition to Division I, the Athletics Department launched a weekly podcast, Tritoncast. Produced by UC San Diego Athletics Communications, Tritoncast features in-depth interviews with UC San Diego personalities including scholar-athletes, alums, coaches, and administrators. Triton fans will get an inside look at the UC San Diego Athletics Department as the program transitions to NCAA Division I and the Big West Conference. New episodes of Tritoncast are available each week on the most popular podcasting apps, including Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Audible, iHeartRadio, Pandora, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Vurbl. In addition, each episode can be heard and downloaded on UCSDTritons.com. For individual show information and listen links, follow Tritoncast on Twitter @Tritoncast.

TAGER TALKS GLOBAL SOCCER
Redshirt junior Lucas Tager appeared on episode 53 of Tritoncast to chat about the global language of soccer. Tager has three nationalities and speaks four languages. To hear the conversation with Tager, click here.
 
GET SOCIAL WITH UC SAN DIEGO SOCCER
Keep up with the Tritons all season long on social media through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The team's handle is @ucsdmsoc.

FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!

GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories, click here.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.