SACRAMENTO — The Sacramento State men's soccer team hits the road for the first time in Big West Conference play this week, heading to Southern California for a pair of contests. The Hornets head to the Inland Empire on Wednesday (Oct. 4) for a battle with UC Riverside, before closing out the week against CSUN on Saturday (Oct. 7). Both matches are scheduled for 7 p.m.
THIS WEEK…
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | UC Riverside | CSUN
MATCH #12
WHAT: Sacramento State (3-6-2, 0-0-2 Big West) at UC Riverside (0-7-3, 0-1-1 Big West)
WHEN: Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2023
TIME: 7 p.m.
WHERE: Riverside, Calif.
STADIUM: UCR Soccer Stadium
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: GoHighlanders.com
MATCH #13
WHAT: Sacramento State (3-6-2, 0-0-2 Big West) at CSUN (2-5-4, 0-2 Big West)
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023
TIME: 7 p.m.
WHERE: Northridge, Calif.
STADIUM: Matador Soccer Field
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: GoMatadors.com
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 UC RIVERSIDE: The reigning regular season and tournament champion Highlanders enter the week in search of their first win, standing 0-7-3 overall and 0-1-1 in Big West play... Wednesday marks only the fourth home match of the year for Riverside, which is 0-1-2 at home... UCR opened league with a 1-0 loss at UC Irvine and a 1-1 draw against Cal Poly... Four of the team's seven losses have been by a single goal... The Highlanders haven't won since shutting out No. 2 UC Santa Barbara, 1-0, in last year's Big West Tournament championship... Riverside has scored only four goals this season, led by Brendan Clark's three points, and has been outscored 15-4... Goalkeeper Carlos Gonzalez has posted a 1.50 goals against and 41 saves (.732 save percentage) in 10 starts.
SERIES NOTABLES: UC Riverside holds a narrow, 8-7-3, lead in the series with Sacramento State, but the Hornets posted a 2-1 win over the Highlanders last year at home... The two teams have alternated wins over the last four meetings, but Sacramento State has won four of the last six dating back to the 2016 Big West Tournament... The Hornets are 2-3-2 on the road against UCR, last falling by a 2-0 score in 2021.
SCOUTING CSUN: The Matadors enter the week with a 2-5-4 overall record and an 0-2 mark in Big West play, but have lost their last four and are winless in their last six (0-5-1) dating back to a 3-1 win over UNLV on Sept. 7... CSUN, which opened 2-0-3 overall, suffered a 5-4 loss against Cal State Fullerton and a 1-0 defeat to CSU Bakersfield to open league play... Three of their last four losses have come by a single goal and they have been shutout in four of their previous six matches... Jamar Ricketts leads the team in scoring with 12 points on four goals and four assists, while Jorge Solorzano has 11 points on a team-high five goals and a helper... Goalkeeper Cooper Wenzel has played all but 15 minutes in net, posting a 1.85 goals against average and 52 saves (.722 save percentage).
SERIES NOTABLES: CSUN leads the all-time series with Sacramento State by a 15-8-2 count after posting a 2-1 win in Sacramento last season... The two teams are 2-2-1 in the last five meetings, with the Hornets' last posting a win on Oct. 16, 2019, in Northridge by a 2-1 count... Eight of the last 10 meetings have all been decided by a single goal with a scoreless draw and a 2-2 tie mixed in... Sacramento State is 4-8-2 on the road against the Matadors and 5-5-2 against CSUN in Big West meetings dating back to 2012, with two head-to-head clashes in the Big West Tournament in 2016 (T, 0-0 in double overtime with CSUN advancing, 6-5, on penalties) and 2017 (L, 3-2 in overtime).
READY? DRAW!: Sacramento State was all tied up to start Big West play at home, posting draws against CSU Bakersfield and UC San Diego. It was 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 opening conference play with a pair of ties since Oct. 3 and 8, 2010, against San Jose State and the Roadrunners as members of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Sacramento State posted six draws in conference play that year en route to a 2-2-6 record.
MY HERO ZERO: The Hornets and the Tritons walked off the field last weekend 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.
NUMBER 9, NUMBER 9, NUMBER 9: Senior Francisco Magana, who coincidentally sports the number nine on his jersey, became the ninth Hornet to find the back of the net with his first goal of the season against CSU Bakersfield -- his first since scoring as part of a 4-0 win at Cal Poly on Oct. 19, 2021 -- which also turned out to be his ninth career goal. His 23 career points are the most among active Hornets in the green and gold, edging out Genaro Alfaro (21) and Austin Wehner (21).
"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 third among active Hornets behind Wehner (7) and Alfaro (7), while the four assists by Wehner and Sundquist are tied for second in the Big West and the most by a Sac State player since Tyler Moss had six in 2021.
HELP IS ON THE WAY: Only two of the team's 15 goals this season have been unassisted, with four of those 15 scores collecting multiple assists.
HE'S (STILL) NUMBER ONE!: Mac Learned still reigns atop the NCAA stats in total saves (62) and and stands second in saves per game (6.20). In addition to his national standing, Learned's save total is 10 better than the next keeper in the Big West (Cooper Wenzel of CSUN) and leads the league by nearly two saves per game.
AWW, SHOOT!: Sacramento State's 15-11 shot advantage against UC San Diego marked the first time this year that the Hornets have out-shot an opponent, while the five shots by Hasan Alsakati in that match were the most by a Sac State player this season.
AUSTIN AUSTIN AUSTIN! OI OI OI!: Forward Austin Wehner continued his torrid senior campaign with his third goal of the season in the non-conference finale against San Jose State, moving him into the team lead -- and tied for seventh in the Big West entering the week -- with 10 points. 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 accomplished the feat with 15 points in 2011 and 10 more in 2012.
