`Runners Set to Kick Off 2019 Season This Weekend
August 29, 2019


BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The 2019 season is just one day away for CSU Bakersfield's men's soccer team. The Roadrunners are refreshed and renewed after the spring and summer seasons, ready to tackle the year ahead, which happens to be CSUB's final season in the Western Athletic Conference.

"We had a very good camp, driven by the strength of an intense spring season," said Richie Grant, Head Coach of the `Runners. "We put a great amount of effort into team building this spring to try and prepare ourselves for the fall. One of our targets was to make sure that we made the new players feel welcome and I think our returners have done a great job of that."

CSUB rolled the momentum of its strong spring season right into a solid preseason schedule. The `Runners suffered a pair of narrow, one-goal losses to future Big West Conference foes CSUN and UC Riverside before defeating Cal State LA 3-0 on Saturday. Grant credits the work that has gone into the season leading up to it for Bakersfield's momentum.

"Our strength is in the experience of our returners and their determination to make it a good season. Two of our oldest players are forwards with Niklas Korber and Ryan Goldsmith both contributing to our attack. With Niall Owens returning as well, we have most of our attack-minded players back and I expect them to have a great campaign."

The `Runners also return a quartet of experience student-athletes from the defensive half of the game. Redshirt junior Detre Bell and redshirt senior Rodrigo Sarmiento will battle for time as CSUB's goalkeeper this season after Sarmiento did a standup job for Grant when Bell went down with an injury early in 2018. On the back line, a pair of sophomore in Stephon Marcano and Kendall Burks return with 35 matches of experience and over 3,000 minutes combined during their rookie campaigns. Bakersfield also welcomed a solid group of newcomers in for the 2019 season, many of whom will look to contribute right away.

When asked about the team's final season in the WAC, Grant did not shy away from setting high standards before moving to the Big West: "We are very proud of the history of CSUB soccer, both as a Division II and then a Division I program. This team has advanced to the NCAA Tournament before and the goal for the current players is to succeed the 2011 team, going beyond where they went. Until we do that, that's going to be our goal. We're super excited to be in the WAC one last year and we're excited to be moving into the Big West next year."

The `Runners are scheduled to open up the 2019 season with a tough, early test. CSUB is headed to the John Rennie Nike Invitational, Aug. 30 – Sept. 1, for a two-game tournament hosted by Duke. After opening the year against Elon on Friday, the `Runners will take on the host Blue Devils, who earned a preseason ranking of No. 10 in the country, on Sunday afternoon in Durham, N.C.

Both of Bakersfield's matches this weekend will be streamed live on WatchESPN and fans can follow along on the ESPN app or online. Links to the broadcast as well as live stats are available on the CSUB men's soccer schedule page.
 
~GoRunners.com~
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