Aztecs Host No. 4 Stanford for Home Opener
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No. 4 Stanford (3-0-0) at San Diego State (0-0-1)
Saturday, Feb. 27 | 6 p.m. PT | SDSU Sports Deck | San Diego, Calif.
Media Coverage: Aztec Digital Network| Live Stats
Notes from the UCLA Match (1-1, Feb. 20)
• The Aztecs tied UCLA on the road 1-1 last Saturday.
• SDSU held a 15-8 advantage in shots, including an 8-1 edge in the first half, and only allowed two UCLA shots on goal.
• UCLA struck first, scoring in the 73rd minute. Five minutes later, the Aztecs responded on a free kick from 30 yards when Blake Bowen redirected Iñigo Villaldea's kick with a header.
• The Aztecs started four freshmen (Bryson Hankins, Elias Katsaros, Andre Ochoa and Iñigo Villaldea) and four sophomores (Blake Bowen, Kyle Colonna, Hunter George and GK Tetsuya Kadono). Five of those underclassmen played all 110 minutes.
• Elias Katsaros was an honorable mention selection for Top Drawer Soccer's National Team of the Week.
• This was the Aztecs' first match since November 16, 2019, a span of 463 days.
Aztec Storylines
• Ryan Hopkins made his head coaching debut last Saturday. Just the fourth head coach in program history, Hopkins comes to SDSU from Virginia (2018-19) whereas an assistant he helped lead the Cavaliers to the 2019 NCAA Championship match. Hopkins has also made stops as an assistant at Denver (2013-17), Wisconsin (2012), Cal Poly (2009-11) and Concordia (2004-08), his alma mater.
• Hopkins was listed as one of the Top 12 Assistant Coaches by College Soccer News in three of the last four years and was named the 2015 NSCAA West Region Assistant Coach of the Year.
• San Diego State returns 13 players, 10 letterwinners and four starters from last year's team.
• The Aztecs return their top goal scorer in Hunter George, who led SDU with five goals and was named to the 2019 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team and was an All-Pac-12 honorable mention selection.
• SDSU also returns Tevenn Roux, the lone senior on the roster, who tied for second on the team (with George) with 10 points and led the team with four assists.
• Other experienced returners include Laukoa Santos, Tristan Weber and Arturo Chavez.
• The Aztecs have 13 newcomers (all freshmen), and their recruiting class has been ranked in the top 10 nationally by Top Drawer Soccer.
• Andre Ochoa (Anaheim, Calif.) was named to Top Drawer Soccer's Freshman Best XI last week. Ochoa was one of just four freshmen midfielders in the nation chosen and the only Pac-12 freshman to be named to the Best XI.
• The Aztecs posted a 3.26 team GPA in the 2020 fall semester, best among SDSU's men's programs.
• The spring 2021 season is an extension of the fall 2020 season, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Opponent Notebook (Stanford)
Stanford is 3-0-0 on the season… They combined to beat Pacific (4-0) and San Francisco (5-0) 9-0 in their two non-conference contests and then beat California 3-1 on the road in their Pac-12 opener… The Cardinal are outscoring opponents 12-1 through three matches… They are ranked No. 2 in the nation by College Soccer News and No. 4 by Top Drawer Soccer… Stanford is outshooting their opponents 52-11 and 22-8 in shots on goal… They have 25 corner kicks while their opponents have just four… Zach Ryan is the reigning Pac-12 Player of the Week after scoring three goals and dishing out an assist in Stanford's two matches last week. He leads the team in goals (4) and points (9)… Will Richmond is second on the team with seven points… GK Andrew Thomas had allowed just one goal in 253 minutes and has made seven saves… Stanford has two players listed in the top five in Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Top 100 Players: Ousseni Bouda (No. 2) and GK Andrew Thomas (No. 5)… Head coach Jeremy Gunn (9th season) is 113-32-28 at Stanford. He is one of four coaches to win an NCAA title in both Division I and II… The Aztecs are 12-19-8 all-time vs. Stanford. The Aztecs last win vs the Cardinal came in 2011.