PULLMAN, Wash. – After reaching new heights in 2018, the Washington State University soccer team is set to get things started in 2019 with the official release of the new season's schedule Wednesday afternoon. After going 10-1-1 at home last season the Cougars will play in the friendly confines of Lower Soccer Field nine times in 2019 including hosting a Cougar Classic tournament in September.
 
While the Cougars play nine times at home in 2019 WSU fans will have to wait two weeks into the new year to see their favorite team as the Cougs begin the season on the road with a pair of contests. For WSU, 2019 begins Aug. 16 at San Diego State in the lone exhibition match of the preseason for the Cougars. Returning back to Washington, the Cougs begin the regular season and head to the West Side to take on Seattle U (Aug. 22) in a match the closes out a home-and-home series that began last season with WSU winning, 3-1, to begin 2018. Seattle earned a spot in the 2018 NCAA Tournament after taking home the WAC Tournament title last season.
 
The Cougs will play four of five games at home during the start of September with matches against Montana (Aug. 30) and James Madison (Sept. 1) to kick off their home slate of contests. The Cougars and the Griz have squared off against one another six times in the last five years including twice in Pullman in 2018. In the two matches last season the Cougs outscored Montana, 8-2, including a 5-1 win in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

Renewing one of the oldest rivalries in program history after a two year break, the Cougs will split up their home stand with a trip up US-195 to take on Gonzaga (Sept. 5) in Spokane. The two sides have met 25 times since 1990 with WSU sporting a 23-1-1 record and a 104-to-9 goal differential against the Bulldogs.
 
To close out non-conference play the Cougars will take part in a pair of tournaments including hosting their own Cougar Classic Sept. 13-15. Over the weekend at Lower Soccer Field WSU clashes with Michigan (Sept. 13) and Loyola Marymount (Sept. 15) while also playing host to Texas Tech and UC Irvine while not facing them on the field. In addition to playing at home, the Cougs game against Michigan marks the first of nine matches on the Pac-12 Network. The final weekend of non-conference sends the Cougars to the Aloha State to take part in the Rainbow Wahine Shootout. WSU faces the tournament host, Hawai'i (Sept. 19) before finishing the weekend with a matchup against Pepperdine (Sept. 22).
 
Pac-12 play begins immediately for the Cougs upon their return to the mainland with a home contest against Oregon State (Sept. 28) on the Pac-12 Network. WSU has won four of the last five including a 2-0 shutout of the Beavers last season in Pullman. Additionally, the game against the Beavers marks the first of four-straight games for the Cougars on the Pac-12 Network and the first of eight conference games that will be televised on the national network.
 
On the road to begin October, WSU heads to the Bay Area to take on the reigning Pac-12 champs, Stanford (Oct. 3), as well as Cal (Oct. 6). Facing both squads at home last season the Cougs beat the Bears, 4-2, while earning a hard-fought, 1-1, draw against the Cardinal, their first result against a No. 1 ranked team in nine all-time matches.
 
A pair of home matches against the Arizona schools break up the long month of road games with Arizona (Oct. 10) and Arizona State (Oct. 13) coming to Lower Soccer Field. The Wildcats earned a spot in the last season's NCAA Tournament as one of five Pac-12 teams to nab bids. Last season, the Cougs stumbled on the road in the Copper State, dropping both contests before returning home where they would snap their midseason skid against Cal.
 
WSU plays three on the road with games at Oregon (Oct. 18), USC (Oct. 24) and UCLA (Oct. 27). The Cougs have been thorns in the side of the Bruins the last few seasons, upsetting UCLA three of the last four years including a pair of 1-0 shutouts each of the last two seasons.
 
The two games in Los Angeles begins a stretch of three-consecutive Pac-12 Network games for the Cougs that includes a home tilt against Utah (Oct. 31). WSU's home schedule concludes against Colorado (Nov. 2) as the Cougars look to shake the Buffaloes who have been WSU's biggest nemesis in recent years, taking three-consecutive matchups between the two sides.
 
The regular season concludes on the road in Seattle with the annual Boeing Apple Cup Series match against Washington (Nov. 8). The Cougs will put their 15-year unbeaten streak against the Huskies on the line when the two teams meet on the pitch live on the Pac-12 Network. Last year the Cougars dismantled the Huskies, 3-1, at Lower Soccer Field behind the individual brilliance of Morgan Weaver as the star striker netted a hat-trick to send WSU into the postseason.
 
Make sure you follow the Cougars on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram all season long for more access off the field and behind the scenes.