BERKELEY – The California men's soccer team returns to the friendly confines of Edwards Stadium to play its home opener against FDU on Friday and then host Dartmouth on Monday.
 
The Golden Bears (0-0-2) opened the 2023 season on the road, posting a pair of 1-1 ties against nationally ranked opponents UNC Greensboro and Wake Forest (see below). UNCG had been ranked 10th in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll, while Wake was ranked 18th in the preseason. In the United Soccer Coaches week one rankings, UNCG is out of the top 25 and Wake – in part due to teams like UNCG dropping out of the upper part of the poll – is ranked 16th. Cal received 16 votes in this week's poll – tying UCLA – and sits just two spots outside the top 25. The Bears are right behind UNCG, which received 17 votes and is the first team outside the poll.

Admission is free for Cal students for regular-season home games at Edwards Stadium. Tickets cost $10 for adults and $7 for seniors (ages 65-up) and youth (2-17).
 
Here are the details for Cal's first two home games:
 
vs. FDU (2-0-0)
When: Friday, Sept 1 at 4 p.m. PT
Where: Goldman Field on Edwards Stadium in Berkeley
Watch: Cal livestream (with Associate AD Dr. Ty-Ron Douglas and Cal men's soccer alumnus Dr. Derek Van Rheenen back on the mic)
Live Stats: Statbroadcast
 
vs. Dartmouth (0-0-0)
When: Monday, Sept. 4 at 1 p.m. PT
Where: Goldman Field on Edwards Stadium in Berkeley
Watch: Pac-12 Networks
Live Stats: Statbroadcast
 
Bears Vs. Spartans, Demon Deacons
On Aug. 24 in Greensboro, North Carolina, Cal and No. 10 UNCG had to wait out two lengthy weather delays before completing their season opener. Arnaud Tattevin put the Spartans ahead in the fourth minute, before Cal striker Nonso Adimabua – assisted by freshman Isaiah Thomas – scored the Bears' first goal of the year in the 22nd minute. Goalkeeper Connor Lambe made five saves to preserve the 1-1 tie.
 
Against No. 18 Wake Forest on Aug. 27, the Bears gave up a fourth-minute goal to Babacar Niang to trail 1-0 early. But Cal rebounded yet again in the first half when midfielder Juan Martinez lofted a free kick into the Demon Deacons' box and found defender Kevin Carmichael, who nodded in the equalizer. Cal outshot Wake, 12-11, and Lambe made one save.
 
Scouting Cal

• Kevin Carmichael's goal at Wake was his first of the year and second of his college career; his goal and staunch defense in both games in North Carolina earned him a spot on the College Soccer News Team of the Week
• Nonso Adimabua has tallied three goals and one assist since joining Cal last season
• First-year midfielder Isaiah Thomas posted his first college point with his assist on Adimabua's goal in Greensboro
• Juan Martinez has collected five assists in his Cal career
• Connor Lambe – a sophomore transfer from Oregon State who has a 1.00 goals-against average through two games – played his first regular-season minutes and made the first start of his college career in the UNCG game
• Leonard Griffin – who won the 2002 NCAA championship as a UCLA player in 2002 and was drafted No. 11 overall by the Chicago Fire in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft – is in his second season as head coach of the Golden Bears
• Griffin was chosen to be a featured presenter in the United Soccer Coaches Convention slated for Jan. 10-14, 2024, in Anaheim

 
Scouting FDU

• The Knights won 3-1 at Fairfield and 1-0 vs. Hofstra to open the season 2-0
• Forward Tony Gomez – who assisted on the first goal at Fairfield and netted the game-winning goal vs. Hofstra – leads FDU in points (3)
• Goalkeeper Spencer King has compiled a 0.50 GAA in two games
• FDU was voted the top team in its conference in the NEC Preseason Coaches Poll
• Seth Roland – who led FDU to the 2022 NEC championship – is in his 27th year as head coach of the Knights

 
Scouting Dartmouth

• The Big Green will start the season at Saint Mary's on Friday before playing in Berkeley on Sunday
• Dartmouth, which was 6-7-3 in 2022, was picked to finish seventh out of eight teams in the Ivy league Preseason Poll
• Midfielder Oskar Magnusson – who led Dartmouth in assists (5) last year – and defender Sam Fenton earned All-Ivy Honorable Mention in 2022
• Bo Oshoniyi is in his fifth year as head coach of Dartmouth

 
Meyer Chosen For Preseason All-Pac-12 Team
A talented central defender and defensive midfielder for the Bears, Berkeley native Wyatt Meyer was named to the 2023 All-Pac-12 Preseason Team. Last year, he was named to the All-Pac-12 Second Team after starting 16 games and posting a career-best three assists.
 
The well-rounded Meyer – an English major who's pursuing a minor in history – also earned kudos for his work in the classroom, as he was named to the 2022 Pac-12 Fall Academic Team and to the College Sports Communicators' Academic All-District Team.
 
Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll
In the 2023 Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll, Cal was chosen fifth with eight points and defending conference champ Washington was picked first with 23 points. The rest of the poll included Stanford at No. 2, UCLA at No. 3, Oregon State at No. 4 and San Diego State at No. 6.
 
Bears Split Exhibitions
Cal played two exhibition games in preseason – a 2-1 loss to Santa Clara on Aug. 13 in Berkeley and a 4-1 win over Saint Mary's on Aug. 19 in Moraga.
 
Next Time
Cal returns to the road to play California Baptist on Sept. 7 and returns to the Bay Area to play at San Francisco on Sept. 10.
 
Stay Posted
For more coverage of the Cal men's soccer team, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalMSoc), Instagram (@CalMSoc) and Facebook (@CalMSoc).