UC San Diego

LA JOLLA, Calif. — Goals came early and often in the first match of the men's soccer season on Thursday night as UC San Diego beat visiting Navy 7-0 at Triton Soccer Stadium.
 
Oren Stuppel had a brace just seven minutes in, with Kelham Wolf scoring in the final minute of the first half to give the Tritons a 3-0 halftime lead. Sean McTague and Jack Nishimoto then scored six minutes apart early in the second half before Ryan Namdar added two goals to bring the match to its 7-0 final scoreline.
 
The Tritons took 19 shots, with 12 on target. Goalkeeper Nic Thiele made three saves to earn the clean sheet. He played the first 77 minutes, with Luc Narido checking in to finish the match without incident.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
McTague made a run down the right side before finding Stuppel arriving in the box for the match's opening goal in the 5th minute. The two are both grad transfers from Cal Poly, where they spent the last four seasons together. Stuppel's second goal came in the 7th minute after a solo run on the left wing.
 
The third goal of the first half saw three freshmen combine to find the back of the net in their collegiate debuts. Cael McElderry took a long free kick from the right sideline that found an unmarked Gavin Carlson on the back post. Carlson's header into the middle saw Wolf win an aerial dual, with his headed effort beating the Navy goalkeeper.
 
The second-half scoring got underway in the 61st minute. McTague converted on a Midshipmen turnover, followed by Nishimoto intercepting a back pass in the 67th minute to make it 5-0.
 
Namdar then finished off two nice combination plays for his brace, one from each side of the field. Adam Dunbar's cross from the right side found Namdar for a headed goal in the 74th minute. Lalo Barbieri then drove to the endline on the left side, earning an assist after Namdar taped home the ensuing cross to end the evening.
 
Nishimoto and Barbieri were both making their collegiate debuts, registering their first goal collegiate goal and assist respectively. Namdar also scored the first goal of his collegiate career.
 
QUOTABLE
"The overall depth of the group really showed tonight," head coach Jon Pascale said. "We played a lot of players, and each one contributed. Each guy we put on is a very capable player. I think that depth is going to pay big dividends next week when we go on the road and have two tough opponents in two very difficult places to play."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Seven goals are the most by UC San Diego men's soccer since Oct. 10, 1997, spanning the entirety of the team's Division I and Division II eras.
• Thursday night marked Navy's worst defeat in its 106-year history of men's soccer.
• Nine Tritons made their collegiate debuts in the match: Lalo Barbieri, Jack Nishimoto, Gavin Carlson, Gary Green, Owen Helm, Liam Zubak, Kelham Wolf, Richard Hoang and Cael McElderry. 

UP NEXT
The Tritons head to Texas for a match with Houston Christian next Thursday, Aug. 27. They will then visit Colorado for a match at Air Force on Sunday, Aug. 30.
 
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 in NCAA Division I. The 24-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 39 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 NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.