SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The No. 22 UC Santa Barbara Men's Soccer team returns home to open Big West play this week, hosting UC San Diego Wednesday night before playing the return leg of the Blue-Green Rivalry against Cal Poly, Sunday afternoon on national television.
 
Wednesday night is UC Santa Barbara's Hispanic Heritage and Revolution Night. The Gauchos welcome Revolution Soccer League players and their families to join them at Harder Stadium as they take on the Tritons. For more info, go to ucsbgauchos.com/CommunityNights.
 
Along with hosting the greatest rivalry in college soccer on a national stage Sunday, UC Santa Barbara will welcome their men's soccer alumni back to Harder Stadium and celebrate the Gauchos' team which reached the program's first ever National Championship Match 20 years ago at halftime.
 
WHEN AND WHERE TO WATCH
Both of this week's matches will be held at Harder Stadium, with Wednesday night's Big West opener kicking off at 7 p.m. and Sunday's Blue-Green Rivalry clash beginning at 4 p.m. Both matches will have live stats available at ucsbgauchos.com/MSOC_Stats. Wednesday night's contest will be live on ESPN+ while fans can catch Sunday's match on both ESPN+ and ESPNU.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Sunday's tilt will be an opportunity for Santa Barbara to take revenge on their green-wearing rivals after the Gauchos saw their nine-match unbeaten run against Cal Poly end in San Luis Obispo on Saturday.
 
GAUCHOS TO KNOW
The good news for the Gauchos is that both of this week's matches are at Harder Stadium, a venue where Santa Barbara has not lost and where their best player has a habit of becoming an unstoppable force. Of Alexis Ledoux's team-leading seven goals (which are the ninth most by any Division I player) and three assists, five and two have come at home.   
 
Speaking of home, the Gauchos have a local talent to thank for a good deal of their success this season: Dunn School graduate and Santa Barbara Soccer Club alumnus Manu Duah. As only a freshman, Duah has played the most minutes of any outfield player (755) for the Gauchos this season, anchoring Santa Barbara's midfield and supporting the back line in the traditional "number six" defensive midfield role.
 
The Gaucho back line will also welcome back Peleg Brown this week, another phenomenal freshman who missed the Blue-Green Rivalry in San Luis Obispo through suspension following his sending off against Portland. His return is not just a boost to the left side of Santa Barbara's defense, where he had started each of the Gauchos' first eight games, but also in attack. Brown is tied with Ledoux for the team lead in assists with three.
 
SCOUTING THE TRITONS
UC San Diego (1-4-4) has struggled to win in their first season as a full Division I member, but they have played some good, close games. Only one of their four losses has been by more than one goal, and their one win was a 3-0 shutout. Other notable results include a 2-2 draw against a Lipscomb squad that was receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches Poll at the time, and keeping within a goal of then-No. 20 Duke and now-No. 13 San Diego. What's more, that 2-1 loss to the Toreros at the beginning of September is the Tritons' only defeat in their last five games.
 
UC San Diego's 13 goals are well-distributed across their lineup, with nine different goal-scorers on the season, none tallying more than two. At the other end, the Tritons have conceded 15, thanks in large part to the work of goalkeeper Nolan Premack. Premack ranks 11^th nationally and second in The Big West with 40 total saves on the season, averaging 4.44 per game, also second in the conference and 26^th in the country.
 
SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS
Cal Poly (3-3-3) will play at UC Davis before coming to Santa Barbara, still looking for their first win away from home this season. The Mustangs will also be looking for their first win in Santa Barbara in over a decade, having not defeated the Gauchos in Harder Stadium since 2012.
 
On Saturday in San Luis Obispo, the Mustangs held Santa Barbara to just four shots in the game, only one of which was on target. Despite his minimal role in the shutout, goalkeeper Nicky McCune was named Big West Defensive Player of the Week, his second time winning the award.
 
Equally impactful, the Cal Poly offense had its most clinical outing of the season on Saturday, putting a season-high eight of their 11 total shots on target for a .727 shot accuracy. Gaucho goalkeeper David Mitzner made a career-high six saves against the Mustangs, including a penalty save.
 
UP NEXT
Santa Barbara continues conference play with what shapes up to be their most challenging Big West road trip next week, playing at Cal State Bakersfield next Wednesday and at UC Irvine next Saturday. The Gauchos' next home match will be Oct. 16, when they host UC Davis.