Sandburg men’s soccer opens season Friday night at home

The Sandburg men’s soccer team kicks off its season this week as the Chargers look to reach double-digit victories for the third time in as many years under coach Gerardo Ruvalcaba.

The Chargers begin their 2025 campaign with a Region 4 contest under the lights at Kleine Field at 7 p.m. Friday vs. Malcolm X. That and other Chargers home contests can be seen live on the Sandburg YouTube channel (weather permitting).

Sandburg finished last season 12-3-3 for the second straight year, won the Arrowhead Conference title and entered the postseason ranked 19th in NJCAA Division II before being upset by Triton in the first round of the Region 4 tournament.

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR THIS SEASON?

Ruvalcaba: “I’m expecting a team that is full of passion, determination, respect and discipline. We’ll move game by game, and every team on our schedule has to be treated with the same energy and respect. We want to win everything.”

THIS WILL BE A SUCCESSFUL SEASON IF …

Ruvalcaba: “This season, we’ll be successful if we keep a positive attitude all the way to the end of the season. We need all of our players to be fully committed to the team.”

O CAPTAINS! MY CAPTAINS!

The Chargers’ captains this season are three returning sophomores. 

• Luis Garcia, sophomore RW

  • Voted Arrowhead Conference MVP and second-team All-Region 4 as a freshman.

  • Scored 16 goals and totaled 41 points, which ranked 16th and 14th, respectively, in NJCAA Division II.

• Alberto Fernandez Do Carmo, sophomore D

  • Started in 15 of his 16 appearances last season, scoring four goals and six assists.

• Connor Mclauchlan, sophomore DB

  • Tallied three assists as a freshman while playing in 16 contests (14 starts).

GAMES TO WATCH• Sept. 11 at Elgin• Sept. 24 at Rock Valley• Sept. 28 at Triton

HOW TO FOLLOW THE CHARGERS• Watch Chargers home games live and on-demand on the Sandburg YouTube channel.• Sign up for SportReporting to get free text and/or email notifications of Chargers game results.• Follow @SandburgNJCAA on Twitter.• Like @sandburgchargers on Facebook.• Follow @sandburgchargers on Instagram.