SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Dominating for the second straight year, the University of San Francisco men's soccer team (4-1-1) blanked Bay Area rival California (3-1-1), 3-0, on Sunday night at Negoesco Stadium behind the strength of a brace from Berkely native Gabriel Bracken Serra.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• Getting the attacking started early, Zane Alafranji ripped San Francisco's first shot of the evening just 1:10 into play, but ultimately missed wife left.
• As the two teams traded shots to open the action, it was not until the 28^th minute off of a corner kick by Gabriel Bracken Serra in which TJ Knight found the perfect angle inside the box to slip the ball past the Golden Bear keeper to give the Dons a 1-0 advantage.
• Less than ten minutes later, Bracken Serra was part of San Francisco's second goal of the night as well as Max Hamelink pushed down the right side of the pitch before delivering a cutback to Bracken Serra just above the box as the Berkeley native blasted it into the back of the net to double up Cal at 36:42.
• Following one last attempt from Max Chretien to close the half, the green and gold remained in control at the halftime break as they led the Golden Bears, 2-0.
• Coming out of the locker room, Bracken Serra continued to make the most of his opportunities as he was fouled inside the box in the 59^th minute. Awarded his second penalty kick of the year, the midfielder rocketed the ball into the top left corner of the cage past the outstretched keeper to keep the Dons in front, 3-0.
• For the remainder of the night, the two teams each fired off a few more shots offensively, but neither would be able to gain enough momentum to record another tally on the scoreboard.
• After outshooting the Golden Bears 7-3 in the second half, San Francisco locked down when it mattered most to hand California their first defeat of the season in route to collecting their second shutout of the season by a final score of 3-0.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• After missing all of 2022 due to injury, Bracken Serra has come on in a big way in 2023 as he now leads the Dons in goals (4) and points (9). Within the WCC, he is also now tied for the lead in each of these categories following Sunday's contest.
• As a team, San Francisco outshot Cal 15-7 in the match, including a 6-1 edge in shots on goal. Notably, the green and gold have allowed less than ten shots as a team in five of their six matches so far this fall.
• Defensively, three Dons were specifically key as they played a full 90 minutes against the Golden Bears – Elias Thomas, Reid Roberts and Ramon Munoz Jr. 

POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:

• To view the full highlights of tonight's match, please click here.
• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Chris Brown, please click here.
• To view the full postgame interview with Gabriel Bracken Serra, please click here.

UP NEXT:
San Francisco will continue their homestand this upcoming Thursday, Sept. 14 as the Dons will host another Northern California rival in UC Davis. Kickoff from Negoesco Stadium is set for 7:00 pm. Live streaming, live statistics and ticket links are available via the team's schedule page.
 
FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the San Francisco men's soccer program, be sure to follow @USFDonsMSoccer on Twitter, @USFDonsMenssoccer on Instagram and @USFDonsMSoccer on Facebook.
 
MERCHANDISE:
Want to dress like the Dons? Get your official San Francisco Dons gear from the University of San Francisco bookstore today! Click here to purchase.
 
SPONSOR THE DONS:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our sponsor - Nike - for their continued support of USF Athletics. Interested in sponsoring the Dons? Please contact Frank Allocco, the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director of External Relations, at fallocco@usfca.edu or at (415) 422-4561.