Aggie men's soccer listed 4th in Big West preseason poll

Late Loyola Marymount goal stops Aggie women, 3-2, in non-conference action.

Coming off a 9-7-4 campaign in 2023 that included a 4-4-1 mark in league play, the UC Davis men's soccer team was listed fourth in the Big West Conference Preseason Coaches' poll.

UCD opens the season August 22 with a non-conference battle at UOP before coming home August 25 for a 1 p.m. game with Utah Valley.

Aggie head coach Dwayne Shaffer, entering his 28th season at UCD, needs just nine wins to reach 250 career victories. A three-time Big West Coach of the Year, Shaffer excelled at Santa Rosa JC and Chico State before turning to coaching.

Shaffer has lined up a strong pre-conference schedule to get the Aggies ready for Big West play that begins Oct. 2 against Cal Poly.

On the schedule are brutal away games at No. 4 Oregon State and No. 5 Stanford. Oregon State reached the College Cup - soccer's Final Four - last fall before falling 2-1 to Notre Dame in the semifinals. Stanford was also a tournament participant.

Also on the non-conference slate are USF, San Diego State, Santa Clara and San Jose State.

UC Irvine tops the Coaches' Poll, followed by Cal State Fullerton, UC Santa Barbara and the Aggies.

After that come Cal Poly, CSUN, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, Cal State Bakersfield and Sacramento State.

UC Davis men’s junior forward Cason Goodman earned a spot on the 2024 Big West Men’s Preseason Coaches’ Team, the only junior along with 10 seniors.

Cason Goodman

Irvine, Fullerton and UCSB top the poll with three selections each.

Goodman is one of only two returning players to start all 20 matches for the Aggies in 2023, a year in which he earned All-Big West Second Team honors after leading UC Davis with seven goals. His presence around the goal was also evident in his ability to set up his teammates, recording three assists as he led the Aggies in total goal contributions (10) and points (17).

Known for being a clutch performer, Goodman led the Big West in game-winning goals, netting five winners in his sophomore campaign. This knack for scoring crucial goals was on display throughout the season, where Goodman began 2023 by scoring in three straight games, including the winner in the Aggies’ 2-1 victory over Ohio State on Aug. 27. He also delivered the decisive goal in the Big West Championship semifinal to defeat No. 1 seed Cal State Fullerton.

In other soccer news, the Aggie women concluded a two-game home stand to open the season with a tense 3-2 non-conference loss to Loyola Marymount Sunday afternoon.

Emma Vane had two goals for the Aggies, while Kylie Dobbs of LMU matched that total as the teams entered the final 40 minutes knotted at 2-2.

Emma Vane had two goals, but it wasn't enough as Loyola Marymount's Maciana Land broke a 2-2 tie with a goal in the 63rd minute to give the Lions a 3-2 win Sunday afternoon at the UC Davis soccer field.

However, Maciana Land scored the winner for the Lions, now 2-0, in the 63rd minute.

The Aggies dropped to 1-1 with the loss after opening the season with a dominating performance in a 2-0 win over Sacramento State.

After away non-conference games at San Jose State and UOP, the Aggie women return home September 1 for an 11:30 a.m. battle with Santa Clara.

Reach Bob Dunning at bobdunning@thewaryone.com