Fresh off a win over defending Big West champion UC Irvine, RV/No. 25 Utah Valley will head to Southern California for a pair of games beginning with preseason favorite UC Santa Barbara on Saturday night at Harder Stadium.
Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. MDT, and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and Big West International. Live stats will be available at GoUVU.com/stats.
GAME DAY INFO
MATCHUP: Utah Valley (5-0-2, 1-0 BW) at UC Santa Barbara (4-3-3, 0-0-1 BW)
KICKOFF: 8 p.m. MDT
LAST TIME OUT
Utah Valley opened Big West play with a 2-0 shutout of the reigning Big West tourney champion UC Irvine Anteaters, the team's third clean sheet of the year and first in league play since at California Baptist in 2024. With the win, the Wolverines claimed the distinction of being the only team in the country to end September unbeaten in each of the last two seasons.
The win also matched the team's longest unbeaten streak to start a season at 7 games, which was done in each of the last two seasons (5-0-2 in 2024, 6-0-1 in 2025). UCSB ended that unbeaten streak in 2024.
Oliver Watts scored his first collegiate goal vs UCI on Wednesday, a curling rocket from about 20 yards out. Watts was assisted by fellow Dane Luca Wingaa Laursen for each of their first collegiate points.
Adem Arous put the game on ice, scoring his second goal of the year in the 70th minute on an assist from Nil Grau. Arous is now in a three-way tie for the team lead in goals, and Grau is now tied for the team lead in points with 6.
Kolby Sessions kept his eighth clean sheet as a Wolverine, moving into a tie for second all-time in program history with Joseph Wheelwright (2016-21). Sessions also lowered his season goals-against average to 0.50, which ranks t-5th in the country.
As a team, UVU's .571 GAA ranks 9th in D-I, and no team west of the Mississippi has a better GAA this season. The program record for a full season is 0.75 in 2014.
Wednesday's win is UVU's first in its league-play opener since 2021 after losing each of the last four. The Wolverines have started league play 2-0 just twice before, in 2019 and fall 2021.
Despite scoring just 10 goals, 13 different players have a goal contribution this season, in addition to Landon Christiansen, who set up the game-winning own goal at #20 Marshall.
SCOUTING THE GAUCHOS
UCSB started the season strong at 1-0-2 with a win over San Jose State and draws with then-No. 12 Marshall and No. 2 San Diego, but are winless in the team’s last three matches, including a spirited 2-1 loss at Cal Poly in the Blue-Green Rivalry. Iceland international Steinar Bjornsson has been one of the top underclassmen in the country, netting a league-leading five goals to go with two assists.
SERIES HISTORY VS UCSB
The prior three games in the series have been all Gauchos, with UCSB winning by scorelines of 4-1, 5-2, and 5-1 in the previous meetings, with the two five-goal games being at Harder Stadium. Only four current Wolverines have faced the Gauchos in Trevor Walk, Naime Odeh, Noah Pogue, and Owen Knecht. Pogue scored his first career goal in 2024 against UCSB.
12TH WOLVERINES SHOW OUT FOR BIG WEST OPENER
Utah Valley supporters showed out for the league opener on Wednesday, with 1,894 fans packing the stands versus UCI, the highest attendance for a standalone men's soccer game since 2021 (excluding doubleheaders with women's soccer). UVU has averaged 1,618 fans over the first four home games this season, ranking 16th nationally and fourth west of the Rockies.
UP NEXT
Utah Valley will head over to Fullerton on Wednesday for a showdown with the red-hot Cal State Fullerton Titans, who come into the weekend on a four-game win streak. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. MDT, and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
