The Cal men soccer is back in Berkeley on wednesday to play in their final two regular season home matches. Following a difficult road campaign, the Golden Bears arrive at 4-6-2 overall and 1-3-2 in the ACC The Bears are scheduled to return to nonconference play on Tuesday, October 22 with a match against Saint Mary’s before hosting No The two games will be played at Edwards Stadium; the kickoff time will be 3:00 p.m. PT.
The Bears are coming from a match they lost by 2-0 to Portland, and they hope to correct that score today. Ironically, in the second half Cal outplayed the Pilots again, shooting 8-4, the team did not score. The loss followed a major upset win over the then ranked number one team, Pittsburgh, on the 11 th of October, pointing to the ability of the team to perform marvellously or equally disappoint this season.
Tuesday’s match against Saint Mary’s (1-6-5) presents an opportunity for Cal to regain momentum before their final ACC contest of the regular season. The Gaels have had a tough season this year but as can be seen when playing non-conference games then there are usually surprises for both teams. In order to do this Cal will need to use their home advantage and the crowd to ensure they come out of the match with a positive score.
The match against the Fighting Irish is tomorrow, but it will be the last home game for some seniors, and therefore, it’s known as Senior Day. At halftime of the game, fans will have the opportunity to meet senior student-athletes before they engage themselves in the game and be honored for their input towards the calendar year. Some of those being honored are co-captains Kevin Carmichael and Wyatt Meyer, who were chosen to the All-Pac-12 First Team in the previous season and drafted by Nashville SC in the MLS SuperDraft.
Carmichael, Cal’s sophomore forward has been tagged for the ACC Preseason Watch List has been a solid rock to Cal’s defence throughout his tenure at the college. Meyer, the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year for 2023 and a United Soccer Coaches All-Far West Region Second Team honoree has been selected for a place in the Top Drawer Soccer Preseason Best XI this fall at the national level.
Three seasons old Leonard Gryphon will be planning his team for a proper finish in the home match. Gryphon, who was a UCLA player and part of the 2002 NCAA championship team, was last season selected the Pac-12 coach of the year and has been helpful in the moulding of Cal as the team progresses through its debut season in the competitively stiff ACC.
Both matches will be streamed on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX) and ESPN+ via the ESPN App so fans that can not make it to the stadium can still catch the game. This brightness might only accepted in Edwards Stadium for different forms where general admission tickets for everybody are at $10 for adults, and $5 for youths and seniors. Students from Cal can get in for free, if they present their student ID.
For Cal and its postseason hopes, these final regular season home games are critical. A great performance against St. Mary may perhaps make WBB get the morale boost that could see them compete for Notre Dame and place better in the ACC. Since the conference tournament is around the corner and its spots for the NCAA tournament are at stake, every game is important for the Golden Bears.
The team will be counting on the steady performance of their goalie Collin Travasos who has played in most of the games this season having missed only one game out of the season. The Bears, who earlier in the season produced moments of heady potency in a 5-0 pounding of Dominican, will require a serious oil change to produce similarly dynamic offenses against two difficult foes.
With Berkeley seniors set for their final regular season home stand, the community stands behind the Golden Bears for what should be an emotional and intense week of college soccer. The results of these contests might make or break Cal’s playoff campaign while the moments from these games are surely treasured by seniors.
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