2023 WAC MSOC Release Week 2

SJSU STANDS UNBEATEN AFTER WEEK ONE
San José State was the lone WAC men’s soccer program to emerge from the opening week of 2023 without a loss on its record. The Spartans earned a 1-1 draw at CSU Bakersfield on Aug. 24 before defeating UC San Diego 2-1 on Aug. 26. Utah Valley, Utah Tech and Seattle U were tied for second in the conference standings with 1-1-0 records to kick off the season.

INIGUEZ’S HEROICS AID SJSU TO FAST START
San José State sophomore midfielder Angel Iniguez was impactful in the Spartan lineup during the season’s first weekend, contributing four points to the cause in an undefeated road trip. Iniguez was credited with the primary assist on the tying goal by Joel Garcia in the 84th minute of a 1-1 draw at CSU Bakersfield on Aug. 24 before connecting on the opening goal in the eighth minute and the final assist on the winning score in the 68th minute of a 2-1 victory at UC San Diego on Aug. 26. Iniguez was named the inaugural WAC Offensive Player of the Week of 2023 for his efforts. 

UTAH TECH DEFENSE IMPRESSES OUT OF THE GATE
The combined effort of Utah Tech in the defensive third led to a successful road split to open the 2023 campaign. The Trailblazers were tied for the conference lead in fewest goals allowed (2) and goals against average (1.00) to open the new season, yielding a total of 10 shots on frame in matches at San Francisco and Saint Mary’s (Calif.). AJ Ciampini and Stockton Short received WAC Defensive Player and Goalkeeper of the Week honors, respectively, following the 1-1 showing away from home.

UTAH VALLEY LEADS SCORING CHARTS TO START
Utah Valley was the leading scoring team from the WAC during the inaugural weekend of 2023, tallying a combined 14 points that included five team goals and four team assists. The Wolverines also paced the conference with 34 total shot attempts and a 17.00 shots per match average.

SOME OF THE NATION’S BEST AWAIT THE WAC IN WEEK TWO
Three top-25 foes are included on the schedule for WAC members in the nonconference season’s second week, with No. 24 LMU traveling to California Baptist on Sept. 2, No. 4 Stanford at San José State and Utah Valley traveling to No. 6 Portland on Sept. 4.