• The Schedule
Saturday, November 5, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. PT
No. 2 UC Santa Barbara (9-3-6, 4-1-4) vs. No. 3 UC Irvine (6-11-2, 5-3-1)
at Harder Stadium in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Watch on ESPN+ | Live Stats
• Gauchos Close Conference with Draw, First Loss
UC Santa Barbara clinched the conference's top overall record for the third straight regular season, but fell one match short of its first undefeated Big West season since 2013, drawing 2-2 at UC Irvine last Wednesday before falling to UC Riverside 4-1 in its regular season finale. Forward Finn Ballard McBride scored two more goals in the rescheduled game against the Anteaters and goalkeeper Leroy Zeller tallied a season-high eight saves. Against the Highlanders, center back Henry Davies flicked in his second goal of the season off a corner kick, but the Gauchos conceded more goals than in their first eight conference games combined.
• Gauchos Win Three Major Awards, Land Seven All-Conference Nods
UCSB took home four All-Big West First Team selections, including three Player of the Year awards for Finn Ballard McBride (Offensive), Henry Davies (Defensive) and Leroy Zeller (Goalkeeper). Center defensive midfielder Sam Fletcher was the fourth Gaucho to make the First Team. Midfielders Lucas Gonzalez (Second), Nemo Philipp (Honorable Mention) and Filip Basili (Freshman) also earned All-Conference honors.
• UC Irvine Rematch
Santa Barbara will face UC Irvine for the second time in 11 days. The Anteaters are a familiar postseason foe, being the most recent team that UCSB has faced in the Big West Tournament. In last year's championship match, the Gauchos ran away with their second ever Big West Tournament title, defeating UCI 4-0 at Harder Stadium. Since its inception in 2008, the Anteaters own a 4-1 record in Big West Tournament games against the Gauchos, with wins coming in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2014.
• McBride No. 4 All-Time at UCSB, 2nd in Nation
After leading the Big West in goals each of the last two seasons, forward Finn Ballard McBride got out to a slow start in 2022 by his standards, working his way back into form early on after sustaining an offseason injury. In the end, the Sydney, Australia native would run away with his third straight conference scoring title, putting away 13 goals and five game-winners, both tied for second-most in the nation at the end of the regular season. He earned his third straight All-Conference nod and second straight First Team selection.
Ballard McBride went on a scintillating stretch during Big West play which saw him score 10 times in eight games. Three times over a four-week span in October, he earned both National Team (College Soccer News) and Big West Player of the Week honors.
His first goal of the year was a late winner at then-No. 24 Loyola Marymount in early September to start a three-game scoring run. On Sept. 28, he kicked off Big West with a game-winning penalty kick against UC San Diego and scored two more goals in a win over CSUN in his next outing. He would score in four straight games during his dominant stretch from Oct. 12-26, including three two-goal performances and the 87th minute equalizer of a thrilling 1-1 Blue-Green Rivalry draw with Cal Poly.
In his three campaigns with the Gauchos, Ballard McBride has now totaled 31 goals, putting him in a tie with Nick DePuy (2013-16) and Rob Friend (2001-02) for No. 4 all-time in Gaucho history. He is the eighth Gaucho ever to be named Big West Offensive Player of the Year and the first since DePuy in 2016.
• Six Straight Shutouts
The Gaucho defense was unbeatable through the first six games of conference play, as UCSB tied a program record for the longest shutout streak in program history. Led by Big West Co-Goalkeeper of the Year Leroy Zeller – who stopped 27 consecutive shots on target during the stretch – UCSB shutout opponents for 657 consecutive minutes of game time.
• Stellar Zeller
Take one quick look at the 6-foot-5, 205-pound Leroy Zeller, and you may have an inlking as to why opposing offenses have had trouble scoring on the Gauchos the past two seasons. He boasts all of the physical attributes you can want in a keeper, combining great size and length to go with incredible reflexes and flexibility. But, it is his ultra-competitive nature mixed with his perpetual maturity in skill level, comfort and instincts within the position that have made him one of the best in the country and the first Gaucho to be named Big West Goalkeeper of the Year since 2010.
Zeller hasn't missed a single second defending the net in 2022, resulting in his team ranking first in the Big West in goals allowed average for the entire regular season (1.00) – with an even better mark during conference play (.78) – for the first time since 2016. The most statistically significant stretch of his career extended through the first two-thirds of UCSB's conference matches, when he led the Gauchos to a program record-tying six straight clean sheets. In total, Zeller helped shutout opponents for over 657 consecutive minutes of game time, stopping 27 shots on target in a row.
Always counted on to make at least one big save a night, Zeller is tied for 10th in the nation in shutouts (7), 27th in saves (62) and is second in goalkeeper minutes (1620). He is the fourth Gaucho ever to win the award and earns his second straight All-Big West selection.
• Henry Davies Repeats as Big West Defensive Player of the Year
Henry Davies burst onto the Big West scene last year as UCSB's sturdy anchor on the back line and a consistent offensive threat whenever he moved up the field, characteristics he has only built on in his senior season as he earned his second straight conference Defensive Player of the Year award.
Physical in the air, consistently well-positioned, and calm and collected with the ball at his feet, UCSB's co-captain has given the Gaucho faithful reason not to stress whenever he's been involved in plays in the defensive third. Once again, he has started in every game at center back, playing a part in seven shutouts and chipping in with two goals as UCSB's best set piece target on the other side of the field.
Davies earned his first career Big West Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Sept. 12, after not only leading UCSB's back line to great success, but being responsible for starting many of the Gauchos' offensive attacks and scoring once in a 5-1 win over Utah Valley. He becomes the second Gaucho ever to earn the honor in successive years, while as a team, UCSB has now received it three straight times.
• Weekly Award Domination
The Gauchos won eight of the 20 Big West Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week awards handed out this season. Finn Ballard McBride and Salvador Aguilar led the team with three offensive selections. Henry Davies and Leroy Zeller both earned one Big West Defensive Player of the Week honor.
• Lucas Gonzalez Earns All-Big West Second Team Selection
After being held out for UCSB's first two games of the season due to injury, redshirt sophomore midfielder Lucas Gonzalez made an immediate impact, recording an assist in each of his first four games of the year. He earned a National Team of the Week selection thanks to a sublime assist against Oregon State to go with his first goal of the season.
Gonzalez scored his second goal of the year against UC Davis on Oct. 19. He would go on to finish tied for third in the conference with a team-high six assists and totaled 10 points (13th).
• Air Aguilar
6-foot-2, 175-pound Salvador Aguilar tore up defenses with his aerial prowess this season, leading to three Big West Offensive Player of the Week selections. He began the year by becoming the first Gaucho since 2018 to score in the first two games of the season, with a 75th minute goal at then-No. 19 Missouri State and a game-winner against Cal Baptist. From Sept. 17-24, he enjoyed a majestic stretch of dramatic goals, scoring an unbelievable 88th minute equalizer against Grand Canyon, a classic 90th minute winner at Cal Poly, and a 3rd-minute stunner against then-No. 5 Stanford.
The former San Jose Earthquakes Academy standout joins Nick DePuy (2015) and Luis Silva (2011) as the only Gauchos to win Big West Offensive Player of the Week three times in the same season. He is the fifth Gaucho ever to earn Big West PotW honors four different times in a career, trailing only DePuy (6) for the program's all-time record.
• Hanging Around the Top-25
The Gauchos entered the second week of Big West play with a No. 24 National Ranking (United Soccer Coaches) and once again received votes this week. UCSB has received votes every week since the preseason, initially cracking the top-25 with a No. 18 national ranking for the week following Sept. 5-11.
• Unbeaten August
UCSB went unbeaten in its first two regular season matches and two exhibitions in August, outscoring opponents by a total of 11-2. The Gauchos equalized late to take a 1-1 tie at No. 19 Missouri State in their season-opener on Aug. 25 and defeated California Baptist 2-0 at home three days later.
• Starting Strong
The Gauchos are unbeaten in their last 11 season-openers with a 9-0-2 record since 2011.
• Season Preview: Defending Champs to Bring Talent and Excitement Back to Harder
Coming off a year where he felt his team far exceeded expectations, head coach Tim Vom Steeg has set the bar for his 2022 Gauchos significantly higher. It will be an intriguing challenge to watch for a team that not only scored 44 goals in 2021 – 11 more than any other school in the conference – and was one of just two Big West schools to allow fewer than a goal per contest, but that also returns 10 of its 11 primary starters from last season.
Adding depth in specific areas was Vom Steeg's offseason focus, and he feels the team's needs have been met with the resulting mix of new offensive playmakers, midfield talent and additional defenders. Check out the 2022 season preview for a full breakdown of this year's Gauchos.
• Preseason Coaches' Poll Favors Gauchos
The Big West Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll is putting last year's Big West champs and Big West runner-ups in the same boat, as UCSB and UC Irvine tied for the most All-Preseason Team selections (3) as well as points (71), although the Gauchos took six first-place votes to the Anteaters' three. Finn Ballard McBride, Henry Davies and Thaabit Baartman were all voted to the Big West Preseason Coaches' Team.
• Gauchos in the Pros: 2022 USL Outings and MLS Updates
Among the current players competing professionally in USL League Two for the Gauchos this past summer were Lucas Gonzalez, Finn Ballard McBride and Alexis Ledoux. Read about their exploits as well as other former members of the program who continue playing at a high level on the USL and MLS fronts here.
• 2021 Recap
UC Santa Barbara was neck-at-neck with UC Irvine during the conference season, as both teams shared the top record during Big West play at 6-1-2 heading into the playoffs. However, they couldn't have looked more different in the final match of the conference tournament, as the Gauchos capped off a magical run with a 4-0 thrashing at Harder Field, the most lopsided win in Big West Championship game history. Despite injuries that could have easily derailed the season, UCSB won its first tournament championship since 2010 and second ever, clinching the program's 14th NCAA Tournament berth since 2002.
Nine Gauchos were named All-Conference, including Big West Defensive Player of the Year Henry Davies and fellow First Teamer Finn Ballard McBride, whose nine goals led the conference for the second straight season. As a team, UCSB finished 12th in the nation in goals (44), 14th in shutouts (9) and 16th in goal differential (+24).
• The Vom Steeg Files
Tim Vom Steeg is in his 24th season of an illustrious career at the helm of the UCSB men's soccer program. After never having qualified for the NCAA Tournament prior to 2001, Vom Steeg has turned the Gauchos into contenders anually, taking UCSB to the dance 14 times since his hiring. He led the program to its first College Cup in 2004 and its first National Championship in 2006. He is a two-time NSCAA National Coach of the Year ('04, '06), and is tied for the most Big West Coach of the Year awards in league history with five, including the 2015 honor. He is the winningest coach in UCSB and Big West men's soccer history. Vom Steeg became UCSB's winngest coach in 2005, earned his 200th overall win in 2013, and triumphed for the 100th time in Big West action during the 2015 season. In 2018, UCSB's 3-1 win over UC Riverside was his 250th career win. His overall record heading into the 2022 season stands at 285-129-56 (.688).
