Aug. 21, 2015
2015 Spartans Men's Soccer Schedule
San Jose, Calif. â€" The San José State men's soccer team plays its second and final preseason game on Sunday, August 23. SJSU welcomes the San Francisco State Gators to Spartan Soccer Field for a 2:00 p.m. kickoff.
San José State returns 14 players from last year's squad, led by strikers Rory Knibbs and Greg Harte who each scored nine goals in 2014. Defenders Kyler McLaughlin and Kyle O'Mahoney, who each earned starting assignments in 16 games last season anchor the back line. Jonathon Colunga, whose eight assists led the WAC and ranked 13th in the nation last year, also return for the 2015 season. With an influx of fresh faces joining the squad, the team looks to improve on last year's 6-11-2 record
San Francisco State went 8-7-3 last season as a member of the Division II California Collegiate Athletic Association. The team had a lot of success on its home field, posting a 7-1-2 record, but struggled on the road at 0-5-1. Second-year head coach Matt Barnes who is very familiar with Spartans head coach Simon Tobin leads San Francisco State. Barnes served on Tobin's coaching staff at CSU Bakersfield in 1997 when Tobin guided the Roadrunners to the Division II NCAA National Championship.
After the SFSU match, the Spartans open the regular season on Friday, August 28, in Los Angeles, Calif., against Loyola Marymount. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
The home opener comes one week later, on Friday, September 4, when San José State hosts Sacramento State at 4:00 p.m. on Spartan Soccer Field. SJSU will be looking for revenge for a 2-1 defeat in Sacramento last season.
The Spartans then hit the road for a pair of Northern California/Bay Area games. On Thursday, September 10 at 7:00 p.m., the team will be at Stanford, which opens the 2015 season ranked No. 8 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America coach's poll. Then it's on to Stockton for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff, against the University of the Pacific on Sunday, September 13.
San José State hosts the UC Davis Aggies in its next match, a 5:00 p.m. kickoff on Wednesday, September 16. A pair of trips to southern California follows that game. SJSU will be at the University of San Diego on Sunday, September 20 at 5:00 p.m. and then UC Riverside on Friday, September 25 with a 7:00 p.m. scheduled start time.
Next up will be the Spartans only home game under the lights, as Bay Area rival Santa Clara come to Spartan Stadium for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff on Thursday, October 1. The two teams played to a 1-1 tie last fall, and then last spring finished 3-3.
Western Athletic Conference (WAC) play opens at Incarnate World on Sunday, October 4. Then it's back to Spartan Soccer Field for a pair of games. First up will be last year's WAC champions the UNLV Rebels on Friday, October 9 at 3:00 p.m., followed by a visit by the Grand Canyon Antelopes on Sunday October 11 at 1:00 p.m.
SJSU spends the next weekend at Utah Valley and Seattle. The Spartans will be in Orem, Utah on Friday, October 16, and in Seattle on Sunday October 18. The following weekend San José State hosts UMKC on Friday, October 23 and Air Force on Sunday October 25, with both games scheduled for a 2:00 p.m. kickoff.
The team returns to Texas for its final regular season road games. They face WAC newcomer Texas-Rio Grande Valley on Friday, October 30 and then Houston Baptist on Sunday, November 1.
The last game of regular season and conference play will be at home on Saturday, October 7 at 2:00 p.m. on Spartan Soccer Field. The opponent is CSU Bakersfield and with coach Simon Tobin having guided the Roadrunners for 27 years before arriving in San Jose last year, this game has turned into quite a rivalry.
Spartan Soccer Field, the home of San José State soccer, is located on the corner of 10th Street and Alma Avenue. General admission for adults is $5 and youth 12-and-under are $3. All youth 12-and-under wearing any soccer jersey will be admitted for just $1 and on Sundays, kids get in free.