UCSB and Westmont Men’s Soccer faced off for the 60th annual Community Shield match at Harder Stadium on Saturday, resulting in a 2-1 win for the Gauchos.
The local rivalry dates back to 1966, when UCSB entered intercollegiate soccer for the first time. The Saturday evening match is the first to be played during the spring, as the teams typically face off during their fall seasons.
“It was another great rendition of one of the oldest rivalries in college soccer,” Westmont head coach Morgan Cathey said. “I think that for the most part, we showed very well and provided a really good performance.”
UCSB kicked off the scoring for the night, as sophomore forward Zac Siebenlist found the back of the net early in the first half for a 1-0 Gaucho lead.
At the 27-minute mark, UCSB goalkeeper and freshman Owen Beninga committed a foul in the box, awarding a penalty to the Warriors. Junior midfielder Cole Lomeli stepped up to the spot to take the kick and converted the equalizer.
“We have a lot of young players. Today, we played 11 freshmen, so for us, those guys rose to the occasion really well,” Cathey said. “I think for large parts of the game, we controlled the moments that we needed to control, so we were very happy, very great.”
The score remained equal throughout the first half, but both teams came out firing at the start of the second. Just 10 minutes into the second half, UCSB junior defender Drew Kamienski ripped a shot from outside the box, hitting the crossbar and ricocheting into the net to put the Gauchos ahead.
That proved to be the final blow, as both defenses held on down the stretch and UCSB earned the one-goal victory.
“The soccer is always going to be a little bit different, because we’re playing with different rosters and they’re playing with different rosters,” UCSB head coach Tim Vom Steeg said of the exhibition matchup. “But in the end, I’m glad Drew hit the shot, glad we won the game.”
The Saturday community event kicked off with UCSB Women’s Soccer hosting CSU Dominguez Hills, part of a doubleheader before the men’s teams kicked off at 7 p.m.
Both Westmont College and UC Santa Barbara plan to make the Community Shield match a doubleheader as well, with both the women’s and men’s sides playing each other in the spring, starting in 2027.
“Even though we’ve played 60 years here, this would be kind of the first spring event, and we can build on this,” UCSB head coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “I think it allows us to work on some things and actually do something on a Saturday night.
“What’s great is, you normally don’t play a lot of games in the spring that kind of seem to matter a lot, and we’re under the lights, with people here, and it’s obviously a good event. So we’re excited to be able to add this event to our spring games, and it’s something that we’re looking forward to doing, going forward.”
Besides being a spring exhibition spring game, this match is also an event that brings together the community. The crowd brought lots of energy, both from UCSB and Westmont’s sides.
“It was great to see a good crowd out for sure,” said Cathey. “I’m excited for this rivalry to keep going.”
The teams partnered with Direct Relief for the Community Shield game, an organization based in Santa Barbara whose mission is to enhance the lives of people in poverty or emergency situations by providing medical resources, aid and disaster relief in the United States and internationally.
The Gauchos have three games left to play this spring. They will travel away to take on San Jose State next Saturday, April 25, and will end their spring campaign with a doubleheader on Saturday, May 2, against Irvine Valley College and Mt. San Antonio College.