SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — For late-game interventions that secured wins for the Gauchos, The Big West named Kaden Standish and Owen Beninga its Men's Soccer Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week, respectively, on Monday. Standish's Offensive Player of the Week selection is the first such honor of his four-year UC Santa Barbara career, while Beninga is already collecting his fourth overall weekly award in just two seasons. The sophomore goalkeeper receives his second Defensive Player of the Week title, to go along with two Freshman of the Week titles.
 
After watching teammate Steinar Bjornsson take The Big West Offensive Player of the Week title and the Gauchos' outright goal lead last week, Standish immediately continued their de facto game of HORSE by blasting home the decisive, long-range goal in Santa Barbara's 1-0 win over Rutgers last Monday night. At Grand Canyon on Saturday, he stayed hot with another goal, a textbook cushioned header. That score brought the Gauchos back on level terms just four minutes after they had gone 1-0 down. Santa Barbara would go on to complete the comeback and earn a 2-1 with a goal from Bjornsson, leaving him and Standish once again tied atop the team's goal list.
 
Beninga also played a pivotal role in Saturday night's win, namely with a last-minute save that preserved the Gauchos' one-goal lead. As a Grand Canyon forward lunged and tapped the ball goal-wards from close range, Beninga stayed tall and kicked the shot safely wide for his seventh save of the evening, matching a career high. It was nearly a carbon copy of one of his three saves at Rutgers last Monday, where he earned his second shutout of the season.
 
Beninga, Standish and the Gauchos return to Harder Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 17 to host San Diego State at 7 p.m. Tickets for that and all of UC Santa Barbara's home matches are available now at ucsbgauchos.com/tickets, and UC Santa Barbara students get into all Gaucho home games for free with their student ID.