Cal Poly Women's Soccer Releases 2026 Schedule, Eyes Big West Title Defense
6/3/2026 5:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Highlighted by 10 regular season home matches and an early-season matchup against the 2025 national runners-up at Spanos, reigning Big West champion Cal Poly women’s soccer unveiled its full 2026 schedule Wednesday.
Season tickets for the 2026 Cal Poly women’s soccer season are available now for $70 and can be purchased HERE or by visiting GoPoly.com/Tickets. Parking for all home games is included in the purchase of season tickets. Single match tickets will go on sale on July 15. Unless any scheduling conflicts arise, all regular season home and Big West matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Kickoff times for all matches this season can be found on the Cal Poly women's soccer schedule page.
The 19-match schedule features six Big West contests at home and three matchups against teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament a year ago — all at home.
Our nonconference slate is set to prepare our team for all 11 Big West battles and put our players in a variety of different environments, so we are ready come mid-September to hunt for the program’s 15th Big West Championship overall.Bernardo Silva, Cal Poly Women's Soccer Head Coach
This fall, the Mustangs are looking to build off one of their most successful seasons in program history that saw Cal Poly capture its fourth Big West Tournament Championship in program history and 14th Big West title overall in Bernardo Silva’s first year at the helm. The Mustangs return 16 letterwinners — including reigning Big West Offensive Player of the Year Annika Smith and two-year team captain Sophia Minnite — from their 2025 squad that earned the program’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 21 years. In addition to the crop of experienced returners, Cal Poly added nine talented transfers over the offseason to join the six incoming freshmen, bolstering its roster to make another run at the NCAA Tournament and defend its Big West Championship crown.
“Our fall 2026 schedule is an exciting one for our players, staff, fans, and community,” Silva said. “Ever since my arrival as the head coach, I have transmitted the message to our players that Cal Poly 2.0 aims to play anybody, anywhere at any time. With the additions of two NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago in Cal Baptist and Utah Valley, the Big West is stronger and deeper than it’s ever been, and as the reigning Big West Champions, we know what this year has in store for us. Hence, our nonconference slate is set to prepare our team for all 11 Big West battles and put our players in a variety of different environments, so we are ready come mid-September to hunt for the program’s 15th Big West Championship overall.”
A REVAMPED BIG WEST
As part of conference alignment, California Baptist, Sacramento State and Utah Valley are all set to join the Big West as full members starting this fall, giving the conference 12 teams in women’s soccer for the 2026 season with Hawai’i and UC Davis both departing for the Mountain West Conference.
PRESEASON TUNEUPS
Cal Poly fans will get their first look at the 2026 Mustangs when the team hosts its annual Green versus White intrasquad scrimmage at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 2, at Mustang Memorial Field Presented by Dignity Health French Hospital. The team wraps up preseason action on Thursday, Aug. 6, when they host 2025 West Coast Conference champion Pepperdine for an exhibition match at 6 p.m.
NONCONFERENCE SLATE
The Mustangs begin their 2026 regular season with four straight home matches, starting with their season opener against UNLV on Wednesday, Aug. 12, at 6 p.m. Then they’ll host Stanford at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16, in a rematch of last year’s NCAA First Round matchup before finishing off the four-match homestand to open the season against San Jose State on Sunday, Aug. 23, at 1 p.m. for Senior Day and University of San Diego on Thursday, Aug. 27, at 4 p.m. as part of the first of two doubleheaders with men’s soccer this season.
Cal Poly will then hit the road for four straight matches to conclude nonconference play, traveling to Arizona State on Aug. 30, Cal on Sept. 3, Pacific on Sept. 10 and Seattle on Sept. 19.
THE BIG WEST SCHEDULE
Cal Poly opens Big West play at home against California Baptist on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at 6 p.m. The Lancers won the Western Athletic Conference Tournament title last year in their final season in the conference to advance to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year. The Mustangs cap off their first week of conference action by hosting Long Beach State at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26, for Alumni Weekend.
The Mustangs head to Cal State Fullerton on Sept. 30 and UC San Diego on Oct. 3 before returning to Spanos on Saturday, Oct. 10, to host new Big West opponent Utah Valley at 6 p.m. Cal Poly travels to CSUN on Oct. 14 and Cal State Bakersfield on Oct. 17 before returning home for a pair of pivotal conference matches against Blue-Green rival UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine. The Mustangs take on UCSB first at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 21, in a rematch of last year’s Big West Championship and then battle the Anteaters at Spanos on Sunday, Oct. 25, at 1 p.m.
Cal Poly takes a trip to UC Riverside on Oct. 28 before returning to San Luis Obispo on Saturday, Oct. 31, at 1 p.m. to host new Big West opponent Sacramento State in its regular season finale. The match is part of a Halloween doubleheader with men’s soccer, who play UC Riverside at 7 p.m. to end their regular season.
POSTSEASON
The top six programs in the 12-team Big West standings earn a spot in the conference tournament, with the top two teams receiving first-round byes and the highest seed hosting each matchup. The opening round of the Big West Championships takes place on Wednesday, Nov. 4, with the No. 3 seed hosting No. 6 and the No. 4 seed hosting No. 5. The conference semifinals are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 7, and the Big West Championship final will be played on Saturday, Nov. 14, at the site of the highest remaining seed.
First Round action in the NCAA Tournament takes place Nov. 20-22, with the NCAA College Cup final set to be played on Monday, Dec. 14, at First Horizon Stadium in Cary, North Carolina.
SCHEDULING NOTES
- Cal Poly hosts all three of its opponents that made the NCAA Tournament a year ago — Stanford (Aug. 16), Cal Baptist (Sept. 23) and Utah Valley (Oct. 10).
- The Mustangs fell to No. 1 seed Stanford 3-1 in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament, striking first just 49 seconds into the match off a header from Jessie Halladay. Cal Poly gave the Cardinal their tightest matchup of the tournament before reaching the NCAA semifinals, where they beat Duke 1-0 and lost to Florida State 1-0 in the national championship.
- This year will mark the first time Cal Poly has played Cal Baptist or Utah Valley since playing both on the road during the 2019 season. The Mustangs are 0-2 all-time against both teams.
- Cal Poly’s match at Arizona State on Aug. 30, will mark its first matchup against the Sun Devils in 23 years and just the second all-time between the two programs.
- The Big West Championship rematch between the Mustangs and UCSB takes place on Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 6 p.m. at Spanos Stadium. Last year, the second-seeded Mustangs took down No. 5 seed UCSB 1-0 in the Big West Championship match to secure their first conference tournament title since 2004 and punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
- The Thursday, Aug. 27, home match against the Toreros will be a rematch of last year’s wild season opener in San Diego that saw Cal Poly and USD play to a 3-3 draw after the Mustangs earned a one-goal lead three separate times in the matchup.
- Cal Poly’s Senior Day match is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 23, at 1 p.m. against San Jose State.
- Alumni Weekend is set for Sept. 26, at 6 p.m. against Long Beach State.
A GLANCE AT THE 2026 SQUAD
- The Mustangs will have 15 newcomers on the team this fall, nine transfers and six incoming freshmen. Five of the nine transfers were mid-year transfers who were with the team during offseason camp over the last few months. Forwards Sam Liaty (El Dorado Hills, CA / Tarleton State) and Kate Zimmerman (Sacramento, CA / San Francisco), midfielder Koko Harris (Loomis, CA / Eastern Washington) and defender Mya Clarke (Manhattan Beach, CA / Cal State Bakersfield) all joined the team in the winter, while defender Maddy Cole (Bakersfield, CA / Cal State Bakersfield) came in during the spring. Cal Poly recently added four other transfers that will join the team this fall — forwards Zoe Minnery (San Luis Obispo, CA / Santa Barbara City College) and Isis Salazar-Ortega (Huntington Beach, CA / Cal State Bakersfield), and midfielders Izzy Sawyers (San Clemente, CA / Oregon) and Miah Thomas (Upland, CA / Cal State Bakersfield).
- Cal Poly’s six incoming freshmen are forward Madison Lujan (Davis, CA), midfielder Delaney Franklin (North Fork, CA), defenders Kate Nunes (Salinas, CA), Suna Roberts (Torrance, CA) and Nina Souto (Rocklin, CA), and goalkeeper Alyssa Lopez (Windsor, CA).
- 2025 Big West Offensive Player of the Year and All-Big West First Team selection Annika Smith is back, along with the heart of Cal Poly’s midfield and two-year team captain Sophia Minnite. 2025 All-Big West Freshman Team selection Shannon Porubski is back between the pipes after recording nine shutouts a year ago, tied for the third most by a Cal Poly goalkeeper in a single season. Farra Franklin, Ava Mirelez, Siena Urzua and Sam Walker are among other key returners for the Mustangs this season.
