California State University Northridge Athletics
California State University at Northridge
Cal State Fullerton
CSUN Hosts Cal State Fullerton, Travels to UC Riverside
10/13/2015 8:42:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Matadors Open Big West South Division Play
NORTHRIDGE, Calif. --- The CSUN Matadors (5-5-2, 1-2-1 Big West Conference) open Big West South Division play with a pair of league contests. On Wednesday, Oct. 14, the Matadors host the Cal State Fullerton Titans at Matador Soccer Field for a 7 p.m. fixture. Three days later, CSUN travels to UC Riverside for a 7 p.m. match against the Highlanders at Riverside Soccer Stadium. Both matches will feature live stats and the game against the Titans will feature live, Spanish-audio broadcast featuring Eduard Cauich and Jose Avalos calling all the action. Fans are also encouraged to check with the CSUN Athletic Department's official Twitter accounts (@GoMatadors, @CSUNMensSoccer and @CSUNCapeCrew) for updates throughout the weekend.
Last week, the Matadors posted a 1-1 draw at UC Davis and a 2-1 victory at Sacramento State. Against the Aggies, sophomore Jeremy Degraffenreidt scored the first goal of his Matador career and senior Adam Hobbs made 10 saves as CSUN picked up an important point in the Big West standings. Two days later, senior David Turcios scored a second-half brace to lift the Matadors to the road win against the Hornets. Dean Wright, Nicolas Camacho and Shane Steffes had assists in the victory at Sacramento State.Â
Turcios has moved into a tie for second on the squad with seven points thanks to three goals and an assist. Wright leads the Matadors with three assists, which ties him for fifth among all Big West Conference players. Hobbs continues to provide stellar play in goal for CSUN and leads the conference with 56 saves and is tied for the league lead with an .800 save percentage for the season. He earned his second Big West Defensive Player of the Week award over the last three weeks on Oct. 12.Â
Following the matches with the Titans and Highlanders, CSUN travels to Cal State Fullerton on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. at Titan Stadium before hosting UC Irvine on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m.
A Closer Look at Cal State Fullerton
The Cal State Fullerton Titans enter Wednesday's contest at Matador Soccer Field with a 7-5-1 overall record and a 2-1-1 record in the Big West Conference. The Titans then host UC Irvine on Saturday, Oct. 17 at Titan Stadium. Last week, Cal State Fullerton posted a 0-0 draw at Cal Poly before falling 2-1 in overtime at UC Santa Barbara.Â
Sophomore Diego Sanchez leads Cal State Fullerton with five goals, three assists and 13 points on the season. Brandon West, who also has three assists, and Ross McPhie have each scored twice and eight other Titans have found the netting in 2015. Cal State Fullerton averages 12.5 shots per game and has 58 shots on goal for the season.Â
In net, junior David Elias has played every minute of action for the Titans and sports a 0.90 goals-against-average, 36 saves and a .750 save percentage. Cal State Fullerton has posted a league-best seven shutouts and averages 11.9 fouls per game. The Titans have received 17 yellow cards and two red cards over the course of the season thus far.Â
George Kuntz is in his second season as the head coach at Cal State Fullerton. The Matadors lead the all-time series with the Titans 21-16-3 and are 11-6-2 overall at home during the series. Last season, the Matadors and Titans played to a 1-1 draw at Matador Soccer Field. CSUN's last win at home in the series came in a 2-1 overtime decision during the 2013 season.
A Closer Look at UC Riverside
The UC Riverside Highlanders enter the week with a 5-7-1 overall record and a 1-3 mark in the Big West Conference. UCR travels to UC Irvine on Wednesday night before hosting CSUN on Saturday night at Riverside Soccer Stadium. Last week, the Highlanders lost 2-0 at UC Santa Barbara and 2-1 at Cal Poly.Â
On offense, senior Norberto Ochoa leads the squad with seven goals and 15 points. Fellow senior Michael Salazar has six goals, three assists and 15 points on the year. Junior Romario Lomeli has a team-high four assists and is one of five Highlanders that has one goal on the season. UCR averages 11.9 shots per game.Â
In net, Ashkan Khosravi and Vincent Morales have each played a substantial amount of time in the 2015 season. Khosravi sports a 1.80 goals-against-average, a .674 save percentage and 31 saves in over 748 minutes while Morales has a 1.00 GAA, an .800 save percentage and 20 saves on the season.Â
CSUN leads the all-time series with UC Riverside 20-5-7 and is 9-3-4 on the road in the series. The last Matador victory in the Inland Empire came in a 2-1 victory during the 2012 season. UCR won the last meeting between the two schools, 2-1, in overtime.
Matador Team Notes
CSUN remained at 50 in the NCAA Division I men's soccer RPI that was released on October 12 ... Dean Wright now leads the Matadors with four assists on the year after recording a pair in the win at Sacramento State ... Shane Steffes and Nicolas Camacho both have two assists on the year to tie for second on the team ... Hobbs checks in at 10th in Division I with 56 saves on the year ... the Matadors have recorded the fewest fouls among all Big West clubs and rank 35th in the nation with an average of 10.1 fouls per game ... the Matadors tied a season high with 14 shots in the victory at Sacramento State ... CSUN has won 16-straight matches when scoring at least two goals, a streak that dates back to the 2013 season ... CSUN has recorded 29 road or neutral-site victories since the start of the 2010 season, the second-most in the Big West ... CSUN's win at Santa Clara was the 400th in program history ... CSUN is 4-2-1 this season when its opponent has more shots on goal in a match ... by virtue of head-to-head record, the Big West North Division has won home field advantage in the Big West Tournament should a pair of matching seeds meet in the Tournament Championship ... CSUN has won three of the last four Big West Defensive Player of the Week awards.Â
