MORAGA, Calif. - On Thursday, August 22nd, the Saint Mary's men's soccer team will kickoff their 2024 campaign with a home matchup against Kansas City, the first against the Roos in program history. They will remain at Saint Mary's Stadium for the weekend and host Big West member Cal Poly to conclude their opening weekend. The Gaels had exhibitions the week prior against fellow WCC member Santa Clara and DII member Sonoma State in preparation for their season opener.
Head coach
Adam Cooper enters his 19th season leading the program and has been a model of consistency as the Gaels have finished inside the top four of WCC play for 13 straight seasons dating back to 2011. During that stretch they made four NCAA Tournament appearances and were crowned WCC league champs three times (2011, 2018, 2019). Cooper and his squad will take on the Roos of Kansas City for the first time in program history Thursday night and then battle Cal Poly Sunday evening at Saint Mary's Stadium.
GAME INFORMATION AND COVERAGE
GAELS OUTLOOK
The Gaels finished the 2023 season with an 8-7-2 overall record and a 3-4 record in WCC action. Despite finishing under .500 in conference play they still placed fourth in the league standings, marking their 13th straight season with a top-four league finish and the longest such streak since San Diego did so for 12 straight seasons from 1992-2003. Saint Mary's had six all-conference selections in 2023 and return four of them including
Toke Amtrup,
Justin Sosa,
Luke Lawrence and
Wade Muttitt. Muttitt finished second on the team with four goals and tied for the team lead with five assists while Sosa had two goals and three assists of his own.
After starting the season 2-2 the Gaels went on an impressive six-game unbeaten streak which included four wins and two draws to improve to 6-2-2 overall. Key wins during that stretch included a home victory over first time opponent Dartmouth and local victories over San Jose State, Sacramento State and UC Davis. A subsequent five-game losing streak would put the Gaels behind the eight ball to start conference play though as they would slip in the standings and fail to contest for the league title.
They would close the season out on a high note, winning three of their final four including a season finale road victory over LMU. Head coach
Adam Cooper will look to continue his historic consistency and league success with a large recruiting class of 14 new Gaels this fall. With key veteran pieces and some exciting new talent, the Gaels are more than capable of making a run at the league title in efforts to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.
ABOUT KANSAS CITY (Summit Valley Conference)
Kansas City is led by head coach Ryan Pore in his 5th season. Pore and the Roos were picked 4th in the Summit League Preseason Poll and had returners Julien Le Bourdoulous and Miguel Fernandez named to the league's Players to Watch list. Bourdoulous finished the 2023 season with three goals and six assists in 17 games played. Fellow freshman Fernandez had a goal and made 16 starts as both players enter their second season with the program in 2024.
Kansas City finished the 2023 season with a 4-8-6 overall record and were 2-3-3 in Summit League play. After placing fourth, the Roos would enter the conference tournament and knock off top seed Denver in a wild 3-3 double overtime draw, eventually advancing in penalties 5-4. They would fall to Omaha 2-0 in the title game to see their season come to an end. Pore and his group have finished fourth in league play for four straight seasons and now have to place in the top two to have a shot at the conference tournament title with the altered format for the 2024 season. Pore was named the 2020 Summit League Coach of the Year and was previously on the staff at Tulsa from 2013-2019.
ABOUT CAL POLY (Big West Conference)
Cal Poly was selected fifth in the Big West Preseason Poll and return 11 players and over half of their goal production from 2023. The Mustangs finished the 2023 season with a 5-8-4 overall record and were an even 3-3-3 in conference play. They would finish 5th in the league standings and see their season come to an end in the conference tournament after falling to UC Davis 1-0 in the first round.
Before the Gaels and Mustangs square off on Sunday, Cal Poly will first take on San Francisco on Thursday at 7:30 PM to start their Northern California road trip and 2024 season. Opening preseason training camp under the direction of second-year head coach Oige Kennedy, Cal Poly also returned four All-Big West selections from 2023 while welcoming 14 newcomers during the offseason – including two Division I transfers and nine freshmen. Having dropped four straight season openers, Cal Poly looks to begin the year with a victory against a Division I opponent for the first time since edging UNLV in 2015 (2-1).
Tickets for both games can be bought online at smcgaels.com/tickets and you can watch all the action live on ESPN+. Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
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