OMAHA, Neb. -

The brightly shining sun was a false sign of hope for the UCSB men’s soccer team Sunday in Omaha, Nebraska.

35-degree weather set the tone for a harsh 2-1 loss against Creighton University in the third round of the NCAA men’s soccer tournament.

UCSB was able to score a goal against  a Creighton defense that had previously allowed only one goal in all of its home games this season and only four games on the year. The goal came with just over 11 minutes remaining in the match when a cross pass by junior forward Dom Sarle was met by sophomore forward David Opoku just yards in front of the goal keeper.

Opoku’s header served as the only offensive success for the Gauchos, who were held to just nine shots throughout the game, and only two on goal. Creighton attempted 17 shots overall, including twelve attempts in the first half that yielded two goals.

Both of Creighton’s goals were scored on dead-ball plays, the first a penalty against junior forward Sam Garza within the box just seven minutes into the first half. Garza’s foul call was met with frustration from the UCSB sideline and allowed Creighton’s Bruno Castro to put the Blue Jays up 1-0 on the PK.

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UCSB Women’s Club Soccer Head Coach Todd Heil can finally lift his ban on a team T-shirt that reads “On the Road to Five,” as the women edged out rival Cal Poly 1-0 in Saturday’s championship match to make their five-peat a reality that can’t be jinxed. Over the three-day NCCS national tournament the No. 1 seed Gauchos won six games, with 19 goals against the most talented teams in the nation. Five women came home with all-tournament honors, including most valuable player Laura Capparilli and most outstanding keeper Carolyn Upton, who allowed only two goals during the weekend.

“I knew our road to the championship game was going to be difficult,” Heil said. “The girls faced a gauntlet just to have a chance at a fifth National Championship. But they weren’t just up to the task, they excelled.”

The Gauchos beat an impressive series of teams, including Region I and II season champions University of North Carolina (2-0) and University of Pittsburgh (2-1), as well as Region IV champions University of Texas (3-0), who the Gauchos defeated in the 2010 finals.

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Three players tallied one goal and one assist apiece in an offensive effort that led UCSB men’s soccer past Providence College in second round action of the NCAA tournament Sunday night. It was the first game of the tournament for No. 15 UCSB, which received a first-round bye.

“We were rested and well prepared,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “Our game plan was to keep the ball on the ground, move the ball around and work hard in transition on defense.”

With the win, UCSB moves on to play No. 2 Creighton University in a third-round match in Omaha, Nebraska. Providence has been eliminated from tournament action.

The Gauchos were able to gain momentum early in the game despite poor field conditions due to rainy weekend weather. Just six minutes into the match, a through ball by Madueno was met with a powerful kick by Silva, giving UCSB the early 1-0 lead.

“It was ripped,” Vom Steeg said about Silva’s goal. “Silva was not only great but was on a different level on the field tonight.”

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UCSB men’s soccer will face an unfamiliar foe Sunday night when Providence College comes to town for a second-round match of the NCAA tournament. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams, and the Gauchos’ first game in the NCAA postseason.

“We know that every game could be our last,” junior midfielder Nic Ryan said. “If we’re not physical and don’t do the little things then we won’t succeed.”

Providence enters the match with an 11-7-1 record and an at-large bid into the tournament from the Big East conference. The Friars beat Dartmouth University 1-0 in order to advance to the second round. The Gauchos earned a first-round bye and a No. 15 seed to begin the NCAA tournament, and the game against Providence will be their first of the tournament.

“We have to prepare for them like any other game,” junior forward Dom Sarle said. “We have to finish opportunities when we get them in games and stay tight in the back [line of defense].”

Sarle has been a major addition to the Gaucho offensive attack this season. The New York native has seen action in all 21 of UCSB’s games this year, and his eight assists on the season ranks No. 2 overall on the team.

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A muddy night in Irvine seemed even colder for the UCSB men’s soccer team when it was defeated 3-2 in double overtime during the Big West Championship match on the road Saturday night. Senior midfielder Luis Silva had a goal and an assist during the loss, adding to his league-leading 16-goals, but the Gauchos weren’t able to close out the game.

“We got the two-goal lead that we needed to win that game,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “We did what we had to do to try and win the game.”

UCSB and UCI entered the second period of extra time deadlocked at 2-2. Irvine was able to attack the Gaucho defense and convert on a rebounded ball that bounced off the goalpost before being tapped in by forward Miguel Ibarra.

With the win, Irvine will likely be seeded among the top 16 teams before beginning the NCAA tournament, guaranteeing them a first-round bye and home field advantage. UCSB is also likely to gain a high seeding in the NCAA tournament brackets, in large part due to a preseason schedule that yielded victories against Duke (Sept. 2) and Akron (Oct. 5).

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Junior forward Sam Garza’s goal and assist helped the Gauchos overcome visiting UC Davis 2-1 during a semifinal match of the Big West conference tournament Wednesday night. It was UCSB’s fifth win in a row, and dashed all hopes of a postseason run for the Aggies.

“Tonight we didn’t want to give anything back,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said after the game. “We didn’t want to expose ourselves to the point where they could counter attack us.”

The match began slowly, with each team searching for an offensive rhythm amid the physical play on either side of the field. UCD’s back line sports five players that are at least 6’3”, a stark contrast to UCSB’s front line, whose only player over the six-foot mark is sophomore David Opoku.

“Davis is a big team,” Garza said. “They’ve got big players and they’re physical so we try to match it.”

Garza was able to take advantage of the physical play by drawing a foul call against UC Davis in the 17th minute and connected on the following penalty kick.

“I took a touch and it was a little in front of me,” Garza said about the foul. “The guy was coming after it and his cleat got caught in my right foot.”

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The No. 10 UCSB men’s soccer team, currently ranked No. 2 in the league, will find itself in a familiar postseason position tonight when it hosts UC Davis in a Big West tournament semifinal match. This year is the fourth consecutive year the Gauchos have advanced to the Big West playoffs, and now must face a desperate Aggie squad whose hopes for an NCAA tournament berth rely entirely on its performance in the conference tournament.

“Davis is a team that if they lose, they fall below .500,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “And they wouldn’t be eligible for the postseason [NCAA tournament]. Whenever you play a team [like that] you will always get a different type of game.”

UC Davis enters the match 9-7-4 overall and with a 5-3-2 mark in league play. UCSB begins the tournament with a 13-5-1 overall record and a 6-4 record in conference, including four straight wins to close out league play.

The first of two matches this season between UCSB and UC Davis was played on UCD’s home field on Oct. 8 and resulted in a 2-1 overtime victory for the Gauchos. During that game, UCSB out-shot the Aggies 21-12, including a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal.

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A 2-0 victory over visiting Cal Poly capped a four-game winning streak for the UCSB men’s soccer team as it closed out its regular season Friday night. After opening with a 2-4 record through the first six games of conference play, the win against the Mustangs has helped land the Gauchos in the Big West Conference Tournament once again.

“We had really hit rock bottom,” junior forward Sam Garza said. “To come back and get a 2-Nil win against Cal Poly on senior night was amazing.”

UCSB finishes its regular season schedule with a 13-5-1 overall record and a 6-4 mark in conference. Cal Poly closes out its season 6-9-3 overall with a 3-6-1 mark in conference play.

After yielding to a 0-0 first half tie, UCSB opened the second half with a quick score by Garza, who was able to overtake the Mustang defense on the right side of the goal box less than three minutes into play.

“I had two guys on me,” Garza said. “I split the two guys, took it to my right and shot it.”

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A rivalry will be renewed tonight when Gaucho blue meets Mustang green on the brightly lit field beneath the bleachers of Harder Stadium.

Though the UCSB men’s soccer team has already secured its berth in the Big West postseason tournament, tonight’s match still serves as an opportunity for the Gauchos to improve on their turbulent regular season performance before entering playoffs.

“There’s nothing they can do to make the playoffs,” senior midfielder James Kiffe said. “We need to get these points so we can get a home game in conference playoffs. We have a lot more on the line than they do.”

The four teams participating in the Big West tournament have been set, yet the rankings are subject to change depending on the outcomes of this weekend’s league games. UCSB (12-5-1 overall, 5-4 in conference) currently ranks No. 3 in the Big West behind No. 1 UC Irvine and No. 2 UC Davis, and is trailed by No. 4 UC Riverside.

Entering the match, UCSB’s offense leads the league in five major statistical categories, including goals (41), goals per game (2.28), assists (35), assists per game (1.94) and overall points (117). The Gauchos are also ranked No. 6 in the nation in total goals scored.

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It took a game-winning goal by senior midfielder Luis Silva with 19 seconds left in double overtime for the UCSB men’s soccer team to finish off Cal State Northridge 3-2 on the road Tuesday night.

The victory over CSUN gave the Gauchos a 12-5-1 record overall and a 5-4-0 record in the Big West. With the win, UCSB secures its top-four spot in the Big West and a berth in the conference tournament. Northridge drops to 7-8-1 overall and 3-4-2 in league play and will be unable to achieve a top-four finish in the conference.

The game winning score was credited as an ‘own-goal,’ meaning that the Northridge offense had accidentally scored on its own net. Yet it was Silva’s shot that ricocheted off of a CSUN defender into the Northridge goal, giving the Gauchos a last-minute win.

“[Silva] had the whole corner to shoot at,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “The goalie came out, he beat the goalie on a shot and as the ball was heading toward the net a defender ran across and put his foot on it.”

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Team buses will be gassed up for the final road trip of the season today as the UCSB men’s soccer team heads south to face Cal State Northridge. It will be the first and only time the two teams will face each other during regular season play.

The Gauchos currently hold a No. 4 ranking in the Big West with an 11-5-1 overall record and a 4-4-0 record in league play. Northridge is 7-7-3 overall and 3-3-2 in the Big West with a No. 5 place ranking.

“As a team, we all felt the last four games were all must-wins,” junior forward Dom Sarle said. “[Winning will] put ourselves in a good spot for the Big West tournament and eventually the NCAA tournament.”

The Matadors have competed well with teams this season that have beaten UCSB. A 3-2 victory over UCLA on the road at the beginning of the season is one of the strongest standing victories on CSUN’s schedule, while the Gauchos were defeated by the same score while on the road against UCLA a month prior to the Northridge victory.

“We know they’re a good team,” Sarle said. “They have a lot of players that are capable of hurting us.”

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The UCSB women’s soccer team was able to end a tiresome season in strong fashion with a 2-1 victory over rival Cal Poly on senior night this past Friday.

The Gauchos said goodbye to 10 graduating seniors and ensured that their final performances as Gauchos were positive as they played critical roles in the victory.

“I think it’ll be a really nice way to look back and just remember the last game,” senior defender Alyssa Benjamin said.

Benjamin helped improve the Gaucho’s record to 7-11-2, 2-6 Big West, with her second goal of the season in the 53rd minute with a header from the center of the box off a corner kick from senior midfielder Katy Roby.

Roby proved to be more than just a passer in this game, scoring the team’s second goal on a penalty kick minutes later at the 56:26 mark.

“It was a big test,” Roby said. “[Penalty kicks] aren’t the funnest part of the game, but I’m glad it went in and we got the win because it would have sucked to tie Cal Poly.”

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The UCSB men’s soccer team’s 6-0 thrashing of Cal State Fullerton earlier this season will not be on the minds of the squad this Saturday when it travels south to face the Titans in one of the final matches of the season. The Gauchos are currently ranked fifth in the Big West Conference, and performing well in the final games of conference is necessary in order to achieve postseason status.

“We know that to get ourselves into the playoffs we needed three of these next four games,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “And with that, our RPI will be good enough.”

Saturday’s match against CSUF will be the second of the four final games for the Gauchos. UCSB was able to overcome then-No.1 Big West leader UC Davis this past Wednesday evening.

The Gauchos are currently 10-5-1 overall and 3-4 in Big West play, good enough for a fifth-place tie in conference rankings with rival Cal Poly. The Titans are 1-4 in the Big West with a last place ranking. Sitting atop the conference is UC Irvine, UC Davis, UC Riverside and Cal State Northridge.

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The UCSB women’s soccer team will have an opportunity to end its senior players’ successful careers in a strong fashion when the squad plays host to rival Cal Poly tonight.

After losing their previous two league games, UC Santa Barbara currently stands at 6-11-2 and last place in conference at 1-6, but can still salvage a win to conclude the careers of their senior class that has gone 13-7-2 in the Big West before this season.

“It means everything to me and to the rest of the seniors to end the season on a good note and go out and play with everything we have and get a win,” senior defender Nicole Romanowski said. “We’re not going to settle for anything less.”

The Gauchos, who recently lost 2-1 to Pacific before a 2-0 defeat at the hands of UC Davis in last week’s road trip, faces rival Cal Poly in the annual Blue-Green rivalry matchup.

Cal Poly enters the season finale at 9-8-1 with a 3-4 record in the Big West, ending a three-game skid at Pacific last weekend with a 2-1 victory.

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The UCSB men’s soccer team found itself in an unusual position this past Wednesday night when it faced Big West leader UC Davis at Harder Stadium. The Gauchos, a perennial first-place contender in conference, played the game ranked No. 6 out of seven teams in the Big West, yet were able to defeat the Aggies 3-1.

“We know we were playing a team that hasn’t lost since the last time we played them,” Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “The interesting thing is that we just pushed them one game from us [in Big West standings].”

With the win, UCSB improves its record to 10-5-1 overall and 3-4 in conference play. UC Davis drops to 7-7-2 overall and 5-3 in the Big West.

Though the goals usually come from the front line of offense for the Gauchos, Wednesday’s match saw offensive presence generated from the back end of the field. Senior defender Tim Pontius was able to score two goals throughout the game for the Gauchos.

“At this point in the year we don’t care who gets the goals,” Vom Steeg said.

A free kick by Luis Silva at the 37:18 mark in the first half gave Pontius his first opportunity, and the Gauchos a 1-0 lead.

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