UC Santa Barbara
Mustangs Renew Blue-Green Rivalry Saturday at UC Santa Barbara
9/23/2025 3:04:00 PM | Men's Soccer
SAN LUIS OBISPO – The Cal Poly men’s soccer program seeks its first victory at Blue-Green rival UC Santa Barbara in 13 seasons when visiting the Gauchos on Saturday, Sept. 27. Kickoff inside Harder Stadium is 4 p.m. for Cal Poly (3-3-2), which enters the matchup unbeaten in four straight while having outscored its opposition 12-2 during the stretch. Meanwhile, UC Santa Barbara (2-4-2) comes into Saturday’s contest without a win in its last five outings. The Gauchos snapped a three-game slide with draws at UNLV (Sept. 18) and versus Grand Canyon (Sept. 21).
POINTS (NOT) ON OFFER: With the Big West’s current 10-team, single-table format and with each program playing the remaining nine sides just once (on a home-and-home basis, rotating each season), Saturday’s matchup will have no points available. The countable game in the Big West standings between Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara this season occurs on Saturday, Oct. 18 in San Luis Obispo.
CAL POLY VERSUS UC SANTA BARBARA: The Mustangs produced their first unbeaten season against UC Santa Barbara since 2017 last fall, defeating the Gauchos at home, 2-0 (Sept. 28), before producing a scoreless road draw (Oct. 6). Cal Poly’s most frequent opponent at the Division I level, UC Santa Barbara leads the series, 31-16-11.
A HARDER PLACE TO WIN: While Cal Poly is undefeated at home versus UC Santa Barbara in 10 of the previous 15 matchups, the Mustangs have won just once at Harder Stadium in the past 25 years and 26 games. That historic win was a 2-1, overtime, come-from-behind effort on Oct. 19, 2012 in which Cal Poly scored in the 89th and 96th minutes. Meanwhile, 2-2 draws in 2008, 2014 and 2015, a 1-1 draw in 2022 and scoreless draws in 2008, 2016, 2017 and 2024 mark the eight instances since 1998 that Cal Poly has earned a road point versus the Gauchos.
The Blue-Green rivalry returns Saturday, Sept. 27 as the Mustangs visit UC Santa Barbara in a non-conference 4 p.m. matchup!#RideHigh
— Cal Poly Men’s Soccer (@CPMensSoccer) September 22, 2025
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CENTRAL COAST SERIES A TIGHTLY CONTESTED RIVALRY: Twenty-four of the last 33 matches between Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara have been decided by one goal or drawn. Seven of Cal Poly’s nine victories in the last 35 attempts against UC Santa Barbara have been a one-goal triumph. Just four times since 2007 has one side scored as many as three goals against the other (Cal Poly’s 4-1 home victory versus the Gauchos to close 2017 marked the first time since Nov. 9, 2001 that one team had slipped four goals past the other). The Mustangs are undefeated at home against the Gauchos in 10 of the last 15 years while UC Santa Barbara has lost exactly once at home to Cal Poly in the last 26 matchups at Harder Stadium.
CAL POLY-UC SANTA BARBARA MATCHUP REMAINS THE CENTRAL COAST TOP SPORTING ATTRACTION: The best-attended sporting events annually in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties, the Cal Poly-UC Santa Barbara series has drawn 32 of the top 73 regular season crowd figures in NCAA history with all matches occurring during the previous 17 seasons. The matchup at Mustang Memorial Field at Spanos Stadium has sold out all 11,075 seats in 11 of the last 16 seasons. The 25 combined matches between Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara during the last 13 years comprise 25 of the 33 highest attended collegiate soccer games in the United States – including NCAA Tournament and College Cup matches. Since the start of the 2007 season, 344,921 total spectators and an average of 9,581 fans per match have witnessed Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara clash on 36 occasions.
MAHONEY TAKES THE SCORING LEAD: Enjoying his first two-goal game as a Mustang during Cal Poly’s 8-0 home victory against Utah Tech (Sept. 18), sophomore forward Quinn Mahoney is the now the Big West scoring leader after matching his four-goal tally from last fall. Having also scored at Denver (Sept. 8) and versus Saint Mary’s (Sept. 14), Mahoney – the reigning Big West Freshman of the Year honoree – also leads the conference on 10 points and Cal Poly with 13 shot attempts.
MCCUNE IN FRAME: Without a goal allowed in his previous 195 minutes and only six conceded from open play in 708 minutes this season, senior Nicky McCune – the Sept. 9 Big West Defensive Player of the Week honoree – now ranks third among Big West goalkeepers with a 1.02 goals against average and three shutouts and fourth with a .724 save percentage. With a season high five saves at California Baptist (Aug. 30) and Air Force (Sept. 5). A starter in 28 of 31 collegiate outings, McCune ranks third in program history with a 0.95 career goals against average, fourth with 11 career shutouts and fifth with a .763 save percentage.
THE DEFENSE DOESN’T REST: Helping Cal Poly achieve four shutouts at one end of the pitch, freshman defender Tanner Casey – who made his collegiate debut at Air Force (Sept. 5) with a goal – ranks second in the Mustang lineup and third among Big West players with three goals. The Set. 9 Big West Freshman of the Week selection, Casey also owns goals against Saint Mary’s (Sept. 14) and Utah Tech (Sept. 18).
HOME SWEET HOME: Cal Poly extended its program record unbeaten home run at Mustang Memorial Field to 12 successive matches with an 8-0 home victory against Utah Tech (Sept. 18). During the streak, Cal Poly has conceded just five times and recorded eight shutouts since their last setback at Mustang Memorial Field – a 1-0 decision to rival UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 15, 2023.
MUSTANGS RETURN TO NATIONAL TELEVISION:Hosting its first nationally televised match in more than a decade at Mustang Memorial Field, Cal Poly’s Wednesday, Oct. 1 Big West opener against UC Davis will be broadcast on ESPNU. The game marks a re-match between the two sides from last fall’s Big West Championship semifinal that finished 1-1. UC Davis, however, eliminated Cal Poly on penalties before defeating UC Santa Barbara in the final.
MCCUNE, OWENS NAMED TO HERMANN TROPHY WATCH LIST: For the first time in Cal Poly history, multiple Mustangs were named to a Hermann Trophy Watch List as senior goalkeeper Nicky McCune and junior defender Parker Owens earned Aug. 21 candidacy for collegiate national player of the year recognition. Among the 29 standouts named, Cal Poly joined Cornell as the only programs – among more than 200 Division I squads – with two candidates. A total of 15 players will be named 2025 Hermann Trophy semifinalists on Dec. 9 at the conclusion of NCAA Division I All-America voting. From that list, three players will be voted as finalists with the 2025 recipient announced Jan. 9, 2026, at the historic Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
ETC.: Cal Poly’s 8-0 home victory against Utah Tech (Sept. 18) established new Division I program records for total goals, margin of victory and individual assists (seven) … junior forward Jack Civitts was named Sept. 22 Big West Offensive Player of the Week after scoring against Utah Tech and producing Cal Poly’s first three-assist game in 17 seasons.
