The Sacramento State men’s soccer team opened Big West Conference play with a 1-0 victory against the California State University, Northridge Matadors Thursday at Hornet Field.

The Hornets (5-4, 1-0 Big West) shut out the Matadors in 90 minutes of action after allowing only five shots on goal. Sac State sophomore midfielder Matt Carnefix broke the stalemate with a goal in the 52nd minute.

“(Justin) Bedig took a cross on a corner and it went back post. I was lucky to have it bounce to me,” Carnefix said, referring to his game-winning goal.

CSUN (5-5, 0-1 Big West) is the reigning conference tournament champions, and they played like it, said Sac State senior goalkeeper James Del Curto.

“It was intense from the get-go,” Del Curto said after recording his 204th career save, which is the fifth most in program history. “CSUN was on us early, but we worked our way into the game and, in the end, (Carnefix) put away a great goal and it was good win for the team, good effort.”

The Hornets last played the Matadors in the Big West Tournament semifinals in which CSUN won by way of penalty kicks on Nov. 9.

“All the returners were really looking forward to this match,” Del Curto said. “They beat us last year on PKs and we wanted to give it to them this year and they came up here and we gave them what they deserved, so it was good.”

Sac State coach Michael Linenberger said the win was important because of how hard it is to win games on the road but also noted how his team didn’t play their best soccer today.

“We had some moments and we defended well,” Linenberger said. “They’re an explosive team and holding them to five shots and no goals is no easy task. Defensively, we worked really hard today and played pretty well. Offensively, we did just enough. We need to get better with the ball and create more chances.”

Sac State will next host UC Irvine at 4 p.m. Saturday at Hornet Field.