OREM, Utah – Pacific men's soccer will usher in a new era as head coach Andres Ochoa leads the program into the 2026 season on the road this week in the Beehive State, beginning at Utah Valley on Thursday at 6 p.m. PDT at UCCU Stadium and concluding the trip at Utah Tech on Sunday at 7 p.m. PDT at Greater Zion Stadium.

For the second consecutive season, the Tigers (0-0) will start their season away from Knoles Field, kicking off Ochoa's first week of action at the Wolverines (0-0) and the Trailblazers (0-0).

While Pacific has many new faces to the program, graduate student Luca Baltzer headlines the offense as a key returner to the midfield. The 2024 and 2025 All-West Coast Conference Second Team member carried the torch for the Tigers with a team-leading four goals, five assists and 13 points across 17 starts last season. Baltzer has played over 1,350 minutes in each of the last two years at Pacific.

Sophomore Josephat Yangyuoru scored a pair of goals last season during his freshman campaign, including his first collegiate goal against Utah Tech on Aug. 31 in Pacific's home-opening 2-1 victory.

Looking at the defensive end, graduate student Mateus Ruiz-Hurst made 13 starts in goal in 2025 where he sported a 2.26 goals against average with one clean sheet against Air Force. Ruiz-Hurst, the only returning goalkeeper from last year' squad, collected 40 saves in over 1,100 minutes.

The Tigers have 17 new players that will take to the pitch for the first time in 2026 donning the orange and black. Sophomore Joaquin d'Escoto looks to be a key contributor on the backline after transferring from Southern Indiana last season. Freshman Harrison Chapura could make his mark out of the gate after tallying 83 goals and 214 points over four years in high school.

Utah Valley will showcase the debut of a new head coach in Michael Chesler. Chesler was previously an assistant coach at UVU for nine seasons, including last year where the team went 8-4-3 overall and 6-2-1 at home. In the Western Athletic Conference Tournament last season, the Wolverines fell to No. 3-seeded Grand Canyon in the opening round. This year, Utah Valley has shifted from the WAC to the Big West.

The Wolverines return three of their top scoring threats in Nil Grau, Noah Pogue, and Jose Luis Martin Montealegre. Grau and Pogue each registered at least ten points in 2025, marking the first time since 2022 that the Wolverines return multiple ten-point scorers from a previous season. On the defensive side, Kolby Sessions will look to build off a historic first campaign as a Wolverine after tying the single-season shutouts record and ranking among the best goalkeepers in the nation in save percentage (34th, .778) and goals against average (15th, 0.73).

The Tigers and Wolverines have met twice all-time in the series match-up, with UVU leading 1-0-1. The last meeting presented a 2-2 tie in Orem, Utah in 2023, with the Wolverines winning the only other matchup on neutral ground in Las Vegas in 2015, 2-1 in overtime.

Following Thursday's match at UVU, Pacific will wrap up the weekend in St. George, Utah against the Trailblazers, who will start their 2026 slate at Cal State Bakersfield.

Tanner Dutra serves as one of the staples on the Utah Tech back line, scoring a pair of goals with an assist last season. Dutra was one of three Trailblazers to play all 17 matches last year. Luca Campoli earned the bulk of starts in goal in 2025, owning a 3-5-4 record and a 2.13 GAA with two clean sheets in 12 matches.

The Tigers and Trailblazers will meet for just the second time in the head-to-head series. Last year, Pacific edged Utah Tech, 2-1, at Knoles Field with Yangyuoru and senior Montgomery Carey scored the goals for the Tigers in the win.

Thursday's match between the Tigers and Wolverines will be broadcast live on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. PDT and Sunday's contest against the Trailblazers will be showcased on the Mountain West Networks at 7 p.m. PDT.

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