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Carlos Armendariz

Men's Soccer

Men's Soccer Hosts San Jose State in Season Opener

Bakersfield, Calif. – After an extended exhibition season, and 699 days since their last official home game, the CSU Bakersfield men's soccer program will host San Jose State in a season-opening contest at The Main Soccer Field, Thursday, Aug. 26 at 7:00 p.m. The Roadrunners will travel to Phoenix, Ariz., three days later for a match-up with another long-time Western Athletic Conference rival at Grand Canyon on Aug. 29.
 
"We cannot wait to open the 2021 season at home, and we are delighted to welcome Simon Tobin and San Jose State on Thursday," said CSUB Head Coach Richie Grant. "It has been a long time since we've had this opportunity and our team is eager to return to competitive fixtures."
 
Bakersfield finished its exhibition season with a 2-1 record, including a decisive victory over #17 Loyola Marymount on Aug. 20. The `Runners scored four unanswered goals to overcome an early deficit and race past the Lions, 4-1.
 
CSUB also fell on the road to #8 Stanford and dominated The Master's University, 9-1, during exhibition play, outscoring their opponents over three games by a 13-5 margin, including a 13-1 difference in their two home games.
 
Jaime Gutierrez, Brima Kamara, Aodhan O'Hara and Michael Vogel each scored a pair of goals to lead a club that saw nine different players find the back of the net during the three-game pre-season.
 
Just ten players on the roster dressed for the team's last regular-season home game, a 1-0 win over visiting UTRGV on Oct. 27, 2019. Vogel scored the games' only goal, lifting CSUB to its second of four-straight wins.
 
Team captain Carlos Armendariz returns as a leader in the central midfield and is the program's top returning goal scorer netting four during the 2019 campaign. Vogel scored three times that season, while senior forward Tom Shepherd grabbed a pair and Ricardo Soza, Harry Downing and Pedro Moura each struck of a goal.
 
Midfielder Niall Owens registered eight points in 2018 and was an All-WAC Honorable Mention choice in 2019.
 
Downing will lead the back end, along with his partner in the central defense, Stephon Marcano.
 
18 newcomers will round out a roster, that saw two senior classes graduate in the time between the team's last home game and Thursday's opener. That total includes three goaltenders battling to replace stalwart Detre Bell.
 
Freshman Scott Pengelly started against Stanford and LMU, while classmate Sucre Herrera got the nod versus The Master's. Junior transfer Yuki Nishigaki is also in the mix after spending the past two seasons at Barton CC.
 
Defenders Eric Whelan, Bryson Hankins, Niklas Roessler, Kamara, Gutierrez and O'Hara all saw significant minutes during their first pre-season at CSUB.
 
The Roadrunners and Spartans last met in the 2019 WAC Semi-Final, a 1-0 Bakersfield victory. Returner Justin Markus assisted on Niklas Korber's game winning goal in the 84th minute. SJSU won a regular-season conference match-up in San Jose, Calif., earlier that same season.
 
The Spartans lead the all-time series by an 11-8-1 margin.
 
SJSU is lead upfront by seniors Rudy Castro and Willy Miranda, who scored five and four goals respectively during an abbreviated 2020 campaign. Castro added 10 assists to finish with 20 total points.
 
Goalkeeper David Sweeney made 23 saves in eight starts and allowed 1.25 goals against per game, posting a 4-1-3 record. The Spartans were 5-1-3 overall in 2020.
 
Grand Canyon enters the season with a #22 ranking, in the NCAA United Soccer Coaches DI Rankings, after posting an 8-2 overall record and a 7-0 conference mark in 2020. The Antelopes started the year with eight consecutive wins, before falling by a combined 5-0 margin in the WAC Championship game and an NCAA Tournament First Round match-up with Washington.
 
Sophomore striker Maximilian Moeller led the team with six goals a season ago, while midfielder Justin Rasmussen added five.
 
Following its trip to the desert, the `Runners return to Bakersfield for home games with California Baptist (Sept. 2) and Pacific (Sept. 5), before embarking on a five-game road trip ahead of their Big West home opener against Cal State Fullerton (Oct. 6).
 
Fans can purchase tickets for all CSUB Soccer home games on www.gorunners.com/tickets. State, local and university COVID protocol will be followed for all on campus contests.  
 
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Players Mentioned

Carlos Armendariz

#10 Carlos Armendariz

MF
5' 9"
Junior
Harry Downing

#5 Harry Downing

D
6' 0"
Sophomore
Sucre Herrera

#22 Sucre Herrera

GK
6' 0"
Freshman
Stephon Marcano

#23 Stephon Marcano

D
5' 11"
Redshirt Sophomore
Justin Markus

#17 Justin Markus

F
5' 10"
Junior
Pedro Moura

#3 Pedro Moura

D
5' 10"
Sophomore
Niall Owens

#21 Niall Owens

F
5' 7"
Junior
Tom Shepherd

#9 Tom Shepherd

F
6' 2"
Senior
Ricardo Soza

#15 Ricardo Soza

MF
5' 6"
Senior
Michael Vogel

#24 Michael Vogel

MF/F
5' 8"
Sophomore
Eric Whelan

#4 Eric Whelan

D
6' 1"
Senior
Scott Pengelly

#1 Scott Pengelly

GK
6' 2"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Carlos Armendariz

#10 Carlos Armendariz

5' 9"
Junior
MF
Harry Downing

#5 Harry Downing

6' 0"
Sophomore
D
Sucre Herrera

#22 Sucre Herrera

6' 0"
Freshman
GK
Stephon Marcano

#23 Stephon Marcano

5' 11"
Redshirt Sophomore
D
Justin Markus

#17 Justin Markus

5' 10"
Junior
F
Pedro Moura

#3 Pedro Moura

5' 10"
Sophomore
D
Niall Owens

#21 Niall Owens

5' 7"
Junior
F
Tom Shepherd

#9 Tom Shepherd

6' 2"
Senior
F
Ricardo Soza

#15 Ricardo Soza

5' 6"
Senior
MF
Michael Vogel

#24 Michael Vogel

5' 8"
Sophomore
MF/F
Eric Whelan

#4 Eric Whelan

6' 1"
Senior
D
Scott Pengelly

#1 Scott Pengelly

6' 2"
Freshman
GK
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