SACRAMENTO — At the midway of the Big West Conference season, the Sacramento State men's soccer team has some work to do, standing just a point out of the sixth and final playoff spot for the league's postseason tournament. The stretch drive begins at home this week, welcoming Cal Poly on Wednesday (Oct. 11) and league-leading and No. 13-ranked Cal State Fullerton on Saturday (Oct. 14). Both matches are scheduled for a 4 p.m. kick-off at Hornet Soccer Field.
THIS WEEK…
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Cal Poly | Cal State Fullerton
MATCH #14
WHAT: Cal Poly (4-5-2, 2-1-1 Big West) at Sacramento State (3-7-3, 0-1-3 Big West)
WHEN: Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023
TIME: 4 p.m.
WHERE: Sacramento, Calif.
STADIUM: Hornet Soccer Field
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: HornetStats.com
TICKETS: HornetSports.com
MATCH #15
WHAT: No. 13 Cal State Fullerton (10-2-2, 4-0 Big West) at Sacramento State (3-7-3, 0-1-3 Big West)
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023
TIME: 4 p.m.
WHERE: Sacramento, Calif.
STADIUM: Hornet Soccer Field
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: HornetStats.com
TICKETS: HornetSports.com
IN THE POLLS: Cal State Fullerton enters the week ranked No. 13 in the nation according to the latest United Soccer Coaches poll after spending last week among a group of 12 schools receiving votes. Sacramento State has already faced two nationally ranked opponents this season, opening against No. 13 Portland on Aug. 25, and No. 24 Loyola Marymount on Sept. 10.
BE A FOLLOWER...: Fans can keep up with the latest in Sacramento State athletics by following us on Facebook (/SacramentoStateAthletics), Twitter (@HornetSports), and Instagram (@sacstateathletics). You can also follow the Hornets' men's soccer program on Instagram (@sacstatemsoccer) and Twitter (@sacstmsoccer).
WE'LL DO IT LIVE!: Every home match during the 2023 regular season will be streamed live on the ESPN+ subscription platform, with select road contests available on various streaming platforms. Links to watch and for live stats for all matches will be posted, as soon as they are available, on the men's soccer schedule page at HornetSports.com.
SCOUTING CAL POLY: The Mustangs enter the week with a 4-5-2 overall record and a 2-1-1 mark in Big West Conference play following wins over CSUN (2-0) and UC San Diego (3-1) last week... Cal Poly is unbeaten in its last three when you include a 1-1 draw with UC Riverside... The Mustangs are just 1-3-1 on the road this season... Junior forward Jackson Kestler leads the team with 12 points on four goals and four assists, and is tied with teammate Luke Schaefer for the team lead in goals... Goalkeeper Justin Siegel has played all but two matches in net (810 minutes), posting a 1.11 goals against average and 26 saves (.722 save percentage).
SERIES NOTABLES: The Mustangs lead the all-time series with the Hornets by an 18-12-4 count... Sacramento State is unbeaten in the last two meetings with Cal Poly, posting a 1-1 draw in 2021 and a 4-0 win last season... The series is tied 5-5-4 in matches played in Sacramento, with each team winning twice and playing to a draw in the last five meetings here... Cal Poly's last win in Sacramento with a 1-0 win in 2019, while the Hornets haven't won at home in the series since a 5-1 triumph in 2017... The Mustangs lead the series 8-6-2 in Big West Conference matches... Last year's 4-0 shutout by the Hornets is the largest shutout in the series since a Cal Poly win by the same score in 2009 in San Luis Obispo... Three of the last four meetings have been decided in shutouts.
SCOUTING CAL STATE FULLERTON: The Titans stand atop the Big West Conference standings with a 4-0 record in league play, standing at 10-2-2 overall on the season and winning their last eight consecutive matches dating back to a 1-1 draw at Washington on Sept. 10... Fullerton is also unbeaten in its last 10 since a 2-0 loss at SeattleU on Aug. 31... The Titans host Orange County rival UC Irvine on Wednesday before traveling to Sacramento State... Cal State Fullerton is 4-1-2 on the road this year and is unbeaten away from home since falling at Evansville on Aug. 27... Junior midfielder Roberto Ordonez leads the team with 27 points on nine goals and nine assists, while Sulaiman Bah is second with seven goals and 16 points... Five Titans have at least 10 points on the year, while 10 players have found the back of the net -- six of those multiple times... Goalkeeper Tetsuya Kadono has played all but 113 minutes, posting a 1.02 goals against average and 44 saves (.772 save percentage).
SERIES NOTABLES: The Titans lead the all-time series with the Hornets by a 9-5 count... Sacramento State has won the last two meetings with Cal State Fullerton, winning by a 3-1 score at home in 2021 and a thrilling last-second 1-0 win at the death in Fullerton last year... The Titans' last win in the series came by a 2-1 score in double overtime in 2019 in Sacramento... Four of the Hornets' five wins in the series have come at home where they are 4-1... The series as Big West Conference rivals is tied at 5-5... Of the series' 14 meetings, 10 of those have ended in shutouts -- including eight of the first nine meetings in the series since 1994... Three of the last four matches have been decided by a single goal.
READY? DRAW!: Another week, another draw for the Hornets. Sacramento State has been all tied up in three of its four conference matches to start the year -- the most in league play in the program's Big West era (since 2012) and the most since the 2010 squad finished with a 2-2-6 mark in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. The two draws to start Big West play against CSU Bakersfield and UC San Diego were the first back-to-back draws since Sept. 24 and 29, 2021, against Western Michigan (1-1) and Cal Poly (1-1), and the first time the Hornets opened conference play with a pair of ties since Oct. 3 and 8 in that 2010 campaign against San Jose State and the Roadrunners.
MY HERO ZERO: The Hornets and the Tritons walked off the field on Sept. 30 with the nets intact after neither team was able to find the back of the goal in a scoreless draw. It was Sacramento State's first scoreless tie since battling Pacific to a 0-0 record on Sept. 11, 2018, and the first in conference play since a scoreless draw at home against UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 18, 2017. Overall, it was the 20th scoreless draw in school history according to available records.
AUSTIN AUSTIN AUSTIN! OI OI OI!: Make it four for forward Austin Wehner, who connected on his fourth score of the season to give the Hornets the early lead at CSUN over the weeend, tying him for the team lead and ranking him tied for seventh in the Big West entering this week. Add in his four assists on the year and Wehner's 12 points -- which are tied for sixth in the league -- have surpassed his total from all of 2022 (11) and are the most points since teammate Francisco Magana's team-high 12 points last year.
DOUBLE-DIGITS FOR AUS"TEN": After finishing the 2022 campaign with 11 points (four goals and three assists), Wehner is the first Hornet to post back-to-back seasons with at least 10 points since Max Alvarez did so with 15 points in 2011 and 10 more in 2012. For his career in the green and gold, Wehner now has 23 points on eight goals and seven assists -- tying Magana for the most in a career among active Hornets.
PUTTING THE "A" IN ALFARO: Genaro Alfaro's assist on Wehner's score against the Matadors marked his third of the season and put him one back of the team lead. The three assists matches his single-season career high, while his eight career helpers are the most among active Hornets.
HELP IS ON THE WAY: Only two of the team's 16 goals this season have been unassisted, with four of those 16 scores collecting multiple assists.
HE'S (STILL) NUMBER ONE!: For the fourth consecutive week, junior goalkeeper Mac Learned reigns atop the NCAA stats in total saves (73) as well as regaining the lead nationally in saves per game (6.08). In addition to his national standing, Learned's save total is 19 better than the next goalkeeper in the Big West (Cooper Wenzel of CSUN) and leads the league by nearly two saves per game.
"KEEP"-ING BUSY: Learned's six saves against CSUN to close out the weekend marked the fourth consecutive match that the junior has finished with five or more stops in a match and the 10th time in 12 starts that he has finished with at least five this season.
MINUTE MEN: Senior midfielder Cody Sundquist hasn't missed many minutes on the field this year, as his 1,089 minutes played rank sixth among Big West Conference field players. Sundquist has gone a full 90 a total of nine times this season -- including each of the last four -- and has two more matches with 86 minutes played. Sundquist and his nine matches with 90 minutes lead the team and stand one clear of Jaime Robles and his eight "complete games." Along the same lines, goalkeeper Mac Learned's 1,080 minutes in net are tied for fourth in the NCAA and tied for second in the Big West behind only Dayton's Dario Caetano (1,170), Hofstra's Wessel Speel (1,170), and Cal State Fullerton's Tetsuya Kadono (1,147).
WELL-TIMED: Wehner's goal against CSUN snapped a Hornet scoreless streak of 306:44 dating back to Magana's goal against CSU Bakersfield in the 15th minute on Sept. 27.
WINS WANTED: Also in the "not so good" column, the Hornets enter the week riding an eight-match winless streak -- the longest since they opened the 2007 season with an 0-7-1 record. Sacramento State hasn't won a match since a 5-2 win over Pacific on Sept. 7. But, enough of that, back to the good.
"I WILL FIND YOU...": And I will pass it to you. We're paraphrasing here, but senior Cody Sundquist has made good on that, notching his fourth assist of the year against CSU Bakersfield, tying him with Wehner for the team lead. The four assists give him six for his Sacramento State career, tying him for second among active Hornets behind Wehner (7) and Alfaro (8), while the four assists by Wehner and Sundquist are tied for fourth in the Big West and the most by a Sac State player since Tyler Moss had six in 2021.
