Follow UCSB men's soccer on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and WordPress.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – UC Santa Barbara head coach Tim Vom Steeg decided to mix things up with his lineup ahead of Friday night's contest against No. 27 San Diego State, and the gambit paid off as sophomore Nick DePuy – starting at forward for the first time this season – banged home a rebound in the 21st minute to lead the Gauchos to a 1-0 victory over the Aztecs in front of 2,069 at Harder Stadium.

"I'm really pleased that we were able to reward the guys for working hard tonight," said Vom Steeg. "It's obviously great to win, and hopefully we can improve on some things on Sunday (against Drake) and carry some momentum into the start of conference play next week."

DePuy starting up top was one of just a number of changes to the Gaucho XI on Friday night.

Chief among them was freshman goalkeeper Brandon Berke starting in place for an injured Josh McNeely and making three saves for UCSB's first clean sheet of the season.

Freshman defender Jeff Quezada received the start at right back as well while senior Kevin Garcia-Lopez operated out on the far right as a midfielder.

With the 6-4 DePuy as a target man, the Gauchos employed a style reminiscent of last season, playing the ball onto the left flank and serving it into the box. UCSB was overwhelmingly successful in that aspect, as midfielders Axel Mendez, Ismaila Jome, and left back Drew Murphy were all able to consistently provide crosses into the penalty area.

The Gauchos' upper hand offensively led to a 15-12 advantage in shots, though UCSB had many more dangerous chances evidenced by its 7-2 advantage in shots on goal. Even the crosses that didn't find Gaucho heads were tough to deal with for San Diego, as a number of hasty defensive clearances led to a season-high eight corner kicks for UCSB.

DePuy was able to provide the only marker of the game in the 21st minute. With Murphy driving down the left wing, DePuy floated behind his marker as the UCSB left back sent a low drive across the box. SDSU keeper Adam Allmaras came off his line to try and slap away the cross, but deflected it right into the path of DePuy, who tapped it home for his second goal of the year.

The Aztecs had come close to scoring an early goal in the 7th minute, as some nice build-up play led to a screaming shot from midfielder Jeff Rhodes, but an agressive Berke came out to challenge the attempt, getting a hand on the ball and tipping it to the crossbar.

San Diego State was largely out-possessed from there on out, registering two shots on goal the rest of the way, including none in the second half.

Jome, a preseason MAC Hermann Trophy nominee, had one of his better games of the season, leading the team with five shots and setting up a number of plays with a lethal left foot.

The Gauchos will play their final non-conference home game of the season on Sunday evening, as they host Drake University. The Des Moines-based Bulldogs entered the weekend with a 2-4-1 record and faced off against Cal Poly on Friday night.

For tickets to all UCSB men's soccer home games, click here.