SAN FRANCISCO — He’s back, but hopefully not for long.

Matt Wiesenfarth, who earned a piece of the Western Conference scoring title in 2017, returned to USL League Two on Tuesday when he signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco Glens.

“It’s good to be back in this league,” the 25-year-old forward said. “I had a lot of success here and I hope I can get back to that on my way back up the ladder.”

Wiesenfarth brings a wealth of experience, having excelled in the league before. Despite having no less than seven future MLS and USL Championship pro players on his 2017 Burlingame Dragons team—including reigning MLS Rookie of the Year Corey Baird—Wiesenfarth not only led them in goals scored, but tied for the Western Conference scoring title with 13 goals in just 11 games.

In fact, the Dragons didn’t score a single goal that season when the Sacramento native was not on the field.

“We are excited to have Matt on board with the Glens. He has a tremendous pedigree in the USL League Two,” said head coach Javier Ayala-Hil. “He finds the back of the net in important moments and that is a hard quality to find.” 

The banner 2017 season led to a pro contract with the USL Championship’s Sacramento Republic FC. The UC Davis alum played in seven games, scored one goal, and tallied an assist for his hometown club.

Now Wiesenfarth (pronounced WEE-zen-farth) aims to return to that level, seeing San Francisco and the USL League Two as the ideal place to propel him back on the path to the professional ranks.

“The roster we’ve put together this season is an eclectic mix of our the top local current college players, our Celtic Academy youth players, and veterans like Matt who know this league well and what it takes to be successful,” said team president Mike McNeill. “It’s a luxury to be able to add someone of Matt’s caliber who’s also hungry to get back to the next level.”

The Glens open their 2019 regular season this Sunday, May 5, when they take on SF City FC in the San Francisco Derby. Kickoff is 6 p.m. at Kezar Stadium. 

Wiesenfarth knows the Glens’ crosstown rivals well; he’s scored multiple times against them including a four-goal effort in May 2017 that earned him National Player of the Week honors.

“I just seem to have a big game whenever I play them,” he said of SF City. “But every game against them is a new one and the next one will be no different.”

After two more games on the road against Southern California teams FC Golden State Force and Orange County SC Under-23, the Glens’ home opener will take place on Friday, May 17 at Boxer Stadium against the Santa Cruz Breakers at 6 p.m. Check out sfglens.com/tickets for more information.

About San Francisco Glens Soccer Club

Founded in 1961 by the Irish-American community, the Glens have been a mainstay of the San Francisco soccer landscape for decades, winning a pair of local amateur titles in the historic San Francisco Soccer Football League (1979, 1993) and advancing to two National Amateur Cup finals (1979, 1990).

Today, the Glens are open to all and offer a complete club pyramid, with the addition of their USL League Two team in 2018 as the latest evidence of growth on their path to the professional ranks. Along with their youth club, SF Glens Evolution—a U.S. Soccer Development Academy member, USL Academy founding member, and NPL Club status member—the Glens are the largest soccer club in San Francisco, providing all levels of competition to over 70 teams and 1,300 players from micro soccer all the way to the USL League Two team at the top of the pyramid.

To learn more about the San Francisco Glens, visit SFGlens.com and follow the club on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat—all using the handle @SFGlensSC.

About USL League Two

A part of the United Soccer League family which also operates the USL Championship, USL League One, and Super Y-League, USL League Two (formerly the PDL) has served as the proven stepping-stone for aspiring professionals.

Over 70 percent of all MLS SuperDraft selections since 2010 have USL League Two experience, including four from the Glens in 2019 (Sam Junqua, Roy Boateng, Shinya Kadono, and Sam Ebstein—the first San Francisco club to ever have that many picked. Among the many players to have played in USL League Two before making their professional debuts include Newcastle United FC defender DeAndre Yedlin, 2017 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Tim Melia, 2017 MLS Defender of the Year Ike Opara, 2018 MLS Rookie of the Year Corey Baird, and U.S. Men’s National Team members such as Darlington Nagbe, Brad Guzan, Geoff Cameron, Josh Sargent, and the Bay Area’s own Nick Lima.