LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego men's soccer head coach
Jon Pascale announced the 2023 competition slate Thursday. The Tritons' challenging docket features 17 regular season matches, including two scrimmages to open the season and nine Big West matches to finish the season.
UC San Diego will play eight regular season home matches at
Triton Soccer Stadium in La Jolla.
"We are very excited for the upcoming season. We will be challenged in each match with quality opponents," commented Pascale, set to enter his 15th season as the program's head coach. "We get to open the year with four matches at home before embarking on an extremely challenging stretch of games on the road. We believe our non-conference schedule will prepare the team to go toe to toe with all the Big West opponents."
After hosting Arizona Western College (Aug. 14) and UNLV (Aug. 19) in scrimmage matches, the Tritons officially open the 2023 campaign on Thursday, Aug. 24 at home vs. Pacific followed by a Saturday night matchup vs. San Jose State on Aug. 26. The Spartans only lost five matches in 2022. The Tritons continue their home stand hosting the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Aug. 31 and the Westcliff Warriors on Sept. 3 for a Sunday night matchup.
UC San Diego then travels to Colorado for a pair of road games against Denver on Sept. 8 and Air Force on Sept. 10. Hosting the Denver Pioneers last season, the gold and blue faced the crimson when they were ranked No. 6. Remaining on the road, the Tritons head to the Bay Area to face Santa Clara University on Thursday, Sept. 14. Before opening conference play, the Tritons head across town to San Diego for a midweek matchup on Wednesday, Sept. 20.
The Tritons begin the Big West season at home, hosting the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos on Wednesday, Sept. 27. The Gauchos fell to UC Riverside in the 2022 Big West Championship, finishing at 10-4-6. To wrap up September play, UC San Diego will travel to Sacramento State for a Saturday afternoon matchup on Sept. 30. Coming back to La Jolla, the gold and blue host the Titans of Cal State Fullerton on Oct. 4.
Headed north for two road, conference games, the Tritons first face the Cal Poly Mustangs on Sunday, Oct. 8 before traveling to UC Riverside to face the 2022 Big West Champions on Oct. 11. The Tritons fell to the Highlanders by a single goal in 2022. UC San Diego returns to host CSU Bakersfield for Saturday nightcap on Oct. 14 before hitting the road.
Facing CSUN on Wednesday, Oct. 18, the Tritons return home to host the Anteaters of UC Davis on Saturday, Oct. 21 for the final home match of the season. The 2023 slate will wrap for UC San Diego on Saturday Oct. 28 at UC Irvine as the Tritons continue their transition to NCAA Division I.
Admission to home matches at Triton Soccer Stadium is free, though parking permits are required seven days per week on the UC San Diego campus. For the third straight season, all home matches
will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
The Tritons completed their second Division I season with a 4-5 mark in Big West play. UC San Diego earned their first Division I top 25 win over at the time No. 22 Santa Clara University with an even 4-4 road record in 2022.
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 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
