Match #3
ART U Urban Knights (0-1-1) vs. Dominican Penguins (1-0-1)
Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023 at 1 p.m.
San Francisco – Paul Goode Field
Live Video | Live Stats

Match #4
ART U Urban Knights (0-1-1) vs. Cal State Monterey Bay Otters (0-0-1)
Monday, Sept. 11, 2023 at 1 p.m.
San Francisco – Paul Goode Field
Live Video | Live Stats

CONTINUING THE HOMESTAND
Academy of Art men's soccer looks to turn to matches three and four when the Urban Knights continue their six-match homestand against Dominican for a non-conference matchup on Thursday before Cal State Monterey Bay comes to town on Monday.

KICKOFF
Thursday's match against the Penguins will be an afternoon matinee beginning at 1 p.m. and so too will be Monday's showdown against the Otters. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram, as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps. 

KNIGHT WATCH
Orchestrating the offense for the Knights so far this season has been redshirt sophomore midfielder Elvis Mensah, seeming to be a part of every play no matter where the ball is on the field. Mensah has stepped up to the challenge when it comes to corner and free kicks, being involved in most, if not all, attempts made so far in the short-lived season. Leading the defensive line, junior defender Chris Stokes has joined freshman midfielder Joey Glaab and freshman defender Brody Duff in handling the most minutes on the team (all 180 apiece) with contributions to the team's first shutout against the Pioneers of Cal State East Bay on Sept. 2. Junior forward Alejandro Palos is currently the leading shot taker of the Knights with all three of his attempts being on goal.

Standing out in goal has been sophomore goalkeeper Jaiden Brooks, another player who has been out on the pitch for every minute so far this season. Brooks has already racked up 10 saves in his first two matches, currently ranked second in the Pacific West Conference rankings. Versus CSUEB most recently, Brooks completed his first shutout in an ART U uniform with his biggest moment of the match making a save off a penalty, guessing the correct direction by diving to his right and keeping the scoreboard tied. 

PADDLING PAST PENGUINS
Coming into a match with familiar foes, both the Knights and Penguins have played against the same two teams coming into their face off. While the Knights tied the Cal State East Bay Pioneers just last week in a scoreless match, the Penguins struggled against them losing their contest 3-1. However, the Penguins went on to win against the Cal Poly Humboldt Lumberjacks by two goals, a team that the Knights fell to in their season opener. Lex Bernier will be the player the Knights will have to look out for coming into the match, as he leads the Penguins in shots, shots on goal, points, assists, and goals all while only averaging 57 minutes per game. Nylmar Gonzalez De Leon and Alejandro Reyes have each started one match each for the Penguins thus far in the season. Through 20 previous meetings, Academy of Art leads DU 11-8-1.

OBSERVING THE OTTERS
Still looking for their first win of the season, the Otters come to play after recently batting with Colorado School of Mines last Friday which resulted in a 1-1 tie. Mason Ward is the lone goal-scorer for the squad so far on the year with his score coming off a Kane Ritchie assist 70 minutes into the match. Roberto Banegas was also keeping up the pressure firing away at goal with three shots of his own. The Otters shot away the entire contest, recording 12 total with five on target. The Orediggers' single goal was the only shot on target they struck, meaning goalkeeper Jack Blickenstaff didn't record a save with the rest of the opposing team's shots being clear of the posts. The Knights and Otters have met six times previously with the latter ahead 4-2 all-time.

HARD-FOUGHT MATCHUP WITH PIONEERS ENDS IN 0-0 DRAW
An intense battle from both squads ended with no scores as a 0-0 tie emerged from a Sept. 2 non-conference pairing of Academy of Art men's soccer and Cal State East Bay at CCSF Soccer Field.

LOOKING AHEAD
It's the continuation of home events as ART U hosts once again to face off against UC Santa Cruz on Sept. 15 then St. Mary's (Tex.) on Sept.17.