Gonzaga
Cal Poly Closes Home Stand Sunday versus Undefeated Gonzaga
9/6/2024 1:51:00 PM | Men's Soccer
SAN LUIS OBISPO – The Cal Poly men’s soccer program seeks a home stand sweep when welcoming undefeated Gonzaga to Mustang Memorial Field at Spanos Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 8. Kickoff on ESPN+ is 1 p.m. for Cal Poly (1-3-1), which secured its first victory of 2024 Thursday evening, outlasting San Jose State behind sophomore midfielder Diego Guerra’s 35th-minute strike. Gonzaga (5-0-0), meanwhile, extended its season-opening win streak with a 2-0 home victory against Utah Tech (Sept. 5). Outscoring the opposition thus far, 16-3, Gonzaga has scored multiple times in each of its first five fixtures.
CAL POLY VERSUS GONZAGA: The Mustangs are undefeated in four straight versus Gonzaga after dealing the Bulldogs a 4-0 defeat in Spokane last season. Cal Poly, however, has prevailed just once in six all-time home games against Gonzaga, registering that victory with a 3-1 decision on Sept. 15, 2019. Gonzaga leads the all-time series, 6-5-2.
GUERRA MAKES THREE: Held without a goal during its opening three matches, Cal Poly has featured three different goalscorers in its last two outings with junior Conner Lisenbee opening the action at Tulsa (Sept. 1) before fellow forward Ashton Alonge followed against the Golden Hurricane. Sophomore midfielder Diego Guerra then became Cal Poly’s third goalscorer of 2024 against San Jose State (Sept. 5), securing the 35th-minute game-winner.
OFFENSE IN FOCUS: Despite one win through the opening five matchups, Cal Poly leads all 10 Big West programs in total shots (60) and corner opportunities (34) while ranking second with 25 attempts on target. In particular, the Mustangs registered 22 shot attempts at Oral Roberts (Aug. 29) and forced Golden Eagles goalkeeper Joao Mesquita into 11 saves with only a 40th-minute penalty separating Cal Poly from a road point. In a 3-2 setback at Tulsa (Sept. 1), Cal Poly twice led only to be undone by a pair of second-half penalties.
MCCUNE IN FRAME: Now the Big West co-leader with a second clean sheet registered in Thursday’s 1-0 home victory against San Jose State, junior goalkeeper Nicky McCune has conceded just one goal from open play during his last 332 minutes. Overall, McCune has six allowed goals in his first year as a starter, though three are penalties.
UP NEXT (SEPT. 13/16): The Mustangs play their final two non-conference road matchups when visiting Utah Valley on Friday, Sept. 13 and first-time foe Utah Tech on Monday, Sept. 16. Cal Poly has faced Utah Valley just twice prior, falling on the road to start the 2019 season before earning a 1-1 home draw last September.
ETC.: Cal Poly is in its 30th Division I season and 23rd as a Big West member … Cal Poly was selected fifth in the Aug. 19 release of the Big West Preseason Coaches poll … Cal Poly’s 1-0 setback at Oral Roberts (Aug. 29) and 3-2 loss at Tulsa (Sept. 1) marked the program’s first all-time games in the state of Oklahoma.
Diego Guerra with the 35th-minute game-winner for Cal Poly as the Mustangs secure win No. 1 in Thursday's home opener. Cal Poly closes a two-game home stand Sunday, Sept. 8 at 1 p.m. against Gonzaga.#RideHighhttps://t.co/0tAqAQyUe8
— Cal Poly Men’s Soccer (@CPMensSoccer) September 6, 2024
