SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento State men's soccer team's goalkeeping corps received a boost on Tuesday, welcoming former UNC Asheville netminder AJ Bengds to the fold.

"We are excited to welcome AJ to our team for the spring semester," Head Coach Michael Linenberger said. "He will be a great addition to our goalkeeping core for the next two years. He brings Division I experience from UNC Asheville and he is a physically imposing figure at 6-foot-7. We will now have three really good goalkeepers battling for the number one position this spring."

Bengds joins the Hornets after spending the last four years with the Bulldogs, but appearing in only 11 matches as a true freshman in 2022 due to injuries. That year, he started 10 of those 11 contests, finishing with 38 saves in 837 minutes.

That followed a decorated club career with the North Carolina FC ECNL squad, helping his side to a U15 fifth-place finish and a U17 round of 16 appearance. A three-year varsity letter winner at Wakefield HS, he was also part of the North Carolina Olympic Development Program from 2017-19 and was a 2017 ODP Region III Tournament honoree.

Bengds becomes the third commitment for the Hornets this fall, joining Snow College transfer Mateus Romualdo and high school standout Henry Hedden.

2026 SACRAMENTO STATE MEN'S SOCCER COMMITMENTS
Name, Height, Position, Hometown / High School / Previous School, Club
Mateus Romualdo, 6-1, D, Murray, Utah / Murray HS / Snow College, Sparta United
Henry Hedden, 6-2, MF, Alamo, Calif. / Monte Vista HS, Mustang SC
AJ Bengds, 6-7, GK, Raleigh, N.C. / Wakefield HS / UNC Asheville, North Carolina FC Elite