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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The UC Santa Barbara men's soccer team remained unbeaten in Big West play and improved to 9-3-4 overall after defeating Sacramento State 3-0 on Wednesday night at Harder Stadium.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Sophomore forward Nemo Philipp scored his first UCSB goal in the 42nd minute on a stunning left-footed finish on an assist from junior forward Thaabit Baartman.
- At the 78:02 mark, freshman forward Salvador Aguilar gave the Gauchos their third goal with his right foot in the right side of the penalty area, following up on a saved shot from senior forward Rigoberto Barragan.
NOTABLE
- Sophomore goalkeeper Leroy Zeller, who made a season-high nine saves, and the Gaucho defense kept their fourth clean sheet in a row and seventh of the season.
- Caden Vom Steeg and Barragan each picked up their first career assists at the Division I level.
- Aguilar's strike was his fourth goal in the past seven games.
- The Gauchos' shutout streak now stands at 400 minutes and 15 seconds of game time.
- UCSB remains at the top of the Big West Conference standings on 17 points, three ahead of second-placed UC Irvine. The Gauchos have a chance to win the regular season title outright with a win and a UC Irvine draw or loss. They can also win the championship on Saturday night with a draw, a UC Irvine loss, and Cal Poly, CSU Bakersfield, and UC Riverside draws or losses.
QUOTABLE
- "At this point in the year, it's about getting three points. I thought our energy was good, especially in the first half. We had some corner kicks, free kicks, balls that deflected. The second half opened up a bit, with Sacramento State being behind. The best way for us to finish the game was not defending, it was to get the third goal." - head coach Tim Vom Steeg on the Gauchos' win.
UP NEXT
- The Gauchos face UC Riverside on Saturday night in the final home game of the season. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m., with a ceremony scheduled to take place beforehand to honor the team's eight graduating seniors. The game will be livestreamed on UCSBGauchos.com with Gerry Fall and Ben Callon on commentary and live stats will be available on StatBroadcast.
