MORAGA, Calif. — The undefeated No. 10 Gaels head into the week looking forward to an away match against New Mexico before returning home to take on UC Irvine. The match against New Mexico will take place on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. in Albuquerque, N.M. and Saturday's match versus UC Irvine will have a 1:00 p.m. kickoff at Saint Mary's Stadium.
Live streams and stats for the matches can be found on the Gaels' schedule page. Tickets for the home match against UC Irvine can be found by clicking here, calling the Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx, or by purchasing them at the entrance to the stadium.
Saint Mary's ascended to No. 10 in the country in the national coaches' poll today and rank 19th according to RPI. The Gaels are one of only two teams in the nation who have won each of their matches this season, the other being No. 1 Wake Forest. Other publications such as College Soccer News and Top Drawer Soccer also Saint Mary's pegged as a top-15 club.
Saint Mary's continues their dominant performance this season after exciting wins last week against UC Santa Barbara and No. 13 UC Davis. Sebastian Schacht scored his first goal of the season last weekend during the 1-0 win over the Aggies. Gaels' leading scorers Anders Engebretsen and Jake Rudel kept up their stellar play as well as the pair combined for a total of 19 shots and eight on goal over the course of the last two matches.
Goalie Remi Prieur picked up two more shutouts after blanking both UC Santa Barbara and UC Davis to increase his total to six shutouts on the season, which earned him the title of WCC Co-Player of the Week. Prieur collected six critical saves against the Gauchos and the Aggies, and has only allowed four goals through nine matches.
ABOUT NEW MEXICO
New Mexico are 3-5 this season and are returning home to face the Gaels after beating Florida Atlantic 2-0 last week. In their home opener, the Lobos beat No. 22 Seattle 4-2 and also faced No. 24 Washington and UC Santa Barbara this season.
Stat leaders for the Lobos include Omar Grey who has five goals, Tom Smart who has five assists, and goalie Ford Parker who has recorded 25 saves through six appearances.
The Gaels have only met the Lobos once in the history of the program in which the Gaels fell 6-1 on neutral turf.
ABOUT UC IRVINE
UC Irvine has a record of 6-3-1 this season and are coming off a 4-2 loss against Pacific last weekend. The Anteaters have outscored their opponents 20-10 and have recorded five shutouts through ten games.
Jose Ortiz is leading the Anteaters offense with six goals and ten shots on goal, while five players are tied for assists with three so far. Midfielder Ivan Canales has also been an offensive weapon, with three of his four goals being game-winners this year.
Goalie Greg Patenaude has a total of 27 saves and four shutouts through the first half of the season.
Saint Mary's has a record of 5-3-1 all-time versus UC Irvine but the two teams have not met since 2011. Their last matchup was played in Irvine where the Gaels won 2-1 in double overtime
