Who | Utah Tech (7-6, 3-2) at Grand Canyon (6-5-2, 1-2-1) / California Baptist (5-5-2, 3-1)
When | Thursday, Oct. 17 – 8 p.m. / Sunday, Oct. 22 – 7 p.m.
Where | GCU Stadium – Phoenix, Ariz. / CBU Soccer Stadium – Riverside, Calif.
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X) + #UtahTechBlazers

Scouting the Competition:
Grand Canyon is currently 6-5-2 on the season with a 1-2-1 record against WAC opponents and is coming off a weekend that saw the team play one game, which finished as a 1-0 road loss at San Jose State. With an offense fueled by the second-leading goal scorer in the WAC (Bright Nutornutsi – eight goals), GCU ranks second in the conference for total goals scored with 20.
 
Though the Lopes have controlled the series historically and hold a 2-1 advantage at the Division-I level, Utah Tech came away victorious last season, with Carlos Vargas and Gavin Coe scoring in a 2-1 win at Greater Zion Stadium.
 
Against California Baptist, Utah Tech is 0-4 since starting its D-I transition, falling 0-4 in the last game played in Riverside. The Lancers are 5-5-2 on the year and in a solid run of form, having won three of the team's last four contests. Led by Leo Mendez and Luis Mueller's 23 combined points, CBU is currently tied for fourth in the conference for scoring while tying for third in total assists.
 
California Baptist is set to face UNLV on Thursday before hosting Utah Tech on Sunday.

Comeback Kids
Utah Tech responded to a Thursday loss against UNLV, doing what it does best to comeback and defeat Air Force 3-2 at Greater Zion Stadium. After the Falcons scored on a 26^th minute penalty, UT leveled in the 33^rd before taking a lead in the 57^th. Though Air Force would tie things up in the 58^th, the Trailblazers once again found a goal with an 84^th minute winner to take the victory.
 
The result was Utah Tech's fourth come-from-behind win this year, having done it against Saint Mary's (Aug. 27 – W, 2-1), Gonzaga (Sept. 17 – W, 2-1), UC San Diego (Sept. 23 – W, 2-1) and Utah Valley (Oct. 5 – W, 2-1).

A Series of Firsts
A series of first touches opened the Trailblazers' scoring against Air Force on Sunday, with Nathan Martinez getting his first touch of the ball as he lofted an ball into the box for Jerod Allen, whose first touch of the game saw a headed effort land in the back of the net for the game-tying goal. The goal was Allen's first as a Trailblazer while Martinez's assist was also his first as a collegiate soccer player.
 
Miguel Regino also earned his first career starts over the weekend, starting and playing 158 total minutes across the two games against UNLV and Air Force.

Defenders Leading the Offense
The Trailblazer offense was fueled by its defense on Sunday, with AJ Ciampini scoring his first goal of the season on a counterattack before Angel Saldana headed in the game-winner off a Ciampini feed. With the goals on Sunday, Utah Tech defenders have now accounted for three goals and five assists this season.
 
Finding Looks
UT looked close to scoring more goals against Air Force but a pair of last-second blocks prevented the shots from reaching the goal. Bryce Backlund found himself one-on-one in the 72^nd minute but took one touch too many and had his shot blocked, and Abigay Gomez had a shot blocked in the 84^th. However, Utah Tech scored on the ensuing corner kick to take the late lead.
 
1,000 Minute Club
With three games remaining in the season there are three Trailblazers who have already surpassed 1,000 minutes played this season: Stockton Short has played all 1,170 minutes while Julian Herrera (1,157) and Angel Saldana (1,156) are close behind. Damian Arguello (965) and AJ Ciampini (939) look poised to pass the 1,000-minute mark soon while Jimi Villasenor (869) and Abigay Gomez (851) are close as well.

How They Rank
Sami Cuevas (26 – 6^th), Abigay Gomez (23 – t-8^th) and Damian Arguello0 (22 – t-10^th) all rank in the top-10 among WAC players for shots… Cuevas' 26 shots on goal is third… Austin Wallace's 0.8 points per game ranks sixth while his four goals this season is tied for fourth… AJ Ciampini's three assists leads the team and is tied for ninth in the WAC… Stockton Short ranks fourth in total saves with 43 and his 1.23 goals allowed per game is third.
 
The Regular Season Concludes
After this weekend's games against GCU and CBU, Utah Tech men's soccer has just one regular season contest remaining: an Oct. 26 home matchup with the nationally-ranked Seattle University Redhawks. Kickoff at Greater Zion Stadium is slated for 7 p.m.
 
Should UT finish among the top-six in the WAC standings, the 2023 WAC Men's Soccer Championship is scheduled for Nov. 5-11 at Peter Johann Memorial Field in Las Vegas, Nev.; the Trailblazers enter this weekend of play tied with CBU for fourth in the conference with nine points while being four points clear of sixth-place UVU.