Cal Poly Hosts No. 25 Grand Canyon Thursday, Visits No. 15 LMU Monday

Thursday, September 16

San Luis Obispo, CA

7 P.M.

Grand Canyon

Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics

Cal Poly Hosts No. 25 Grand Canyon Thursday, Visits No. 15 LMU Monday

9/15/2021 11:02:00 AM | Men's Soccer

SAN LUIS OBISPO – The Cal Poly men's soccer program looks to extend a three-match unbeaten run against a pair of ranked foes when hosting No. 25 Grand Canyon on Thursday, Sept. 16 and visiting No. 15 Loyola Marymount on Monday, Sept. 20 at 4 p.m. Kickoff both evenings is 7 p.m. for Cal Poly (2-1-0), which resumes action after 10 days following a 3-0 home victory against San Francisco (Sept. 6). Facing its first ranked opponent since a 2-1 home win against then-No. 24 Loyola Marymount on Sept. 26, 2019, Cal Poly – and junior goalkeeper Carlos Arce-Hurtado – have conceded just one goal in the last 230 minutes. The Mustangs lead all 10 Big West Conference programs with just 0.75 goals allowed per match. With successive 1-0 wins at No. 22 Oregon State (Sept. 6) and versus Saint Mary's (Sept. 10), Grand Canyon (4-1-0) received 66 points in the Sept. 14 edition of United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll to slide into the national rankings. Loyola Marymount (5-0-1), dropped from No. 11 to 15 in the poll despite a 2-1 home win against CSUN (Sept. 9) and 3-2 victory at UC Riverside (Sept. 12).

FOLLOW CAL POLY THIS WEEK: Zachary Anderson-Yoxsimer provides play-by-play for Thursday's match against Grand Canyon for GoPoly.com HERE … streaming video and live stats from both games will also be available via GoPoly.com HERE.

THE COMPANY YOU KEEP: Including Thursday's meeting with No. 25 Grand Canyon, four of Cal Poly's opening six matchups will come against programs either ranked or receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll (ay time of match). Having already defeated Saint Mary's (receiving votes) on Aug. 30 and drawn San Diego State (receiving votes, now No. 21) on Sept. 3, Cal Poly – after facing Grand Canyon– visits No. 15 Loyola Marymount on Sept. 20.

CAL POLY VERSUS GRAND CANYON: Cal Poly's only other Division I matchup versus Grand Canyon was a 2-0 home win on Sept. 11, 2014.

CAL POLY VERSUS LOYOLA MARYMOUNT: The Mustangs face Loyola Marymount for the first time since Sept. 26, 2019, when forward Manny Perez's 92nd-minute goal handed Cal Poly a 2-1 victory against the then-24th-ranked Lions. Cal Poly also prevailed in the last matchup in Los Angeles, 2-0 (Sept. 27, 2015). At the Division I level, Cal Poly owns a 5-2-1 record against Loyola Marymount.

ARCE-HURTADO SHINES IN GOAL: Having conceded just two goals from open play through four matches, junior goalkeeper Carlos Arce-Hurtado leads the Big West and ranks 41st among NCAA Division I players with a .711 goals against average. Arce-Hurtado, who takes a 154-minute shutout streak into Thursday's match against Grand Canyon, also ranks second in the Big West with a .824 save percentage and sixth with 3.50 saves per match. Through 21 collegiate appearances, Arce-Hurtado ranks fourth in program history with a 1.09 career goals against average and fifth with a .738 save percentage.

FRESHMEN IN THE FOLD: Fueling Cal Poly's successful start are three freshmen that have combined to score five of the program's six goals this season. With two goals apiece and the game-winners in both of Cal Poly's victories, forward Conner Leber and defender Jacob Glass each rank fifth among Big West goalscorers. Adding an assist in Cal Poly's 3-0 win against San Francisco, Leber also ranks fifth with five points. Additionally, forward Max Kleinhammes notched the leveler in Cal Poly's 1-1 home draw with San Diego State (Sept. 3).

BOYAL SETS THE TABLE: The Big West's co-leader and ranked 18th among NCAA Division I players with three assists, senior midfielder Neil Boyal – a 2020 transfer from Louisville – set up both of Cal Poly's goals (11 minutes apart) during the program's 2-1, come-from-behind victory at Saint Mary's (Aug. 30) before providing a pass that led to the final goal in Cal Poly's 3-0 win against San Francisco (Sept. 6). A starter in all four matches, Boyal ranks second in the lineup with 92.0 minutes played per outing.

UP NEXT (SEPT. 25): Cal Poly completes Big West preparations with a Saturday, Sept. 25, non-conference matchup at UC Santa Barbara. Kickoff from Harder Stadium is 7 p.m. for Cal Poly, which seeks just its second road victory against the rival Gauchos in the last 22 visits. The best-attended sporting events annually in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties, the Cal Poly-UC Santa Barbara series has drawn 24 of the top 59 regular season crowd figures in NCAA history with all matches occurring during the previous 13 seasons.

ETC.: Cal Poly's 2-1 victory at Saint Mary's (Aug. 30) marked Cal Poly head coach Steve Sampson's 100th collegiate victory. Sampson, who finished 64-19-19 with Santa Clara (1986-90), owns 36 victories with the Mustangs and a now 100-62-31 career collegiate mark.