CSUN Men's Soccer To Open Exhibition Slate This Week

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---The CSUN men's soccer team opens exhibition play with three matches over seven days with the action getting underway Sunday at the University of San Diego with a 5 p.m. kick-off.

Play continues Wednesday when the Matadors host Cal Poly Pomona at 7 p.m. before wrapping up the exhibition slate Saturday night at home against Cal State Dominguez Hills.

TD 23
Terry Davila returns for his 23rd season on the pitch for the Matadors, his 24th overall as head coach at CSUN. With 206 career victories, he is 39th among active Division I coaches in the category.

Victor Garcia, who begins his 10th year on the Matador staff, was promoted to associate head coach in Feb. 2022. Garcia also serves as a video analyst for the Salvadorian Men's National Team. In his role with the Salvadorian program, he participated in the 2022 Concacaf Octagonal World Cup qualifiers and was part of a Salvadorian club that was a 2022 U20 Uncaf finalist. Former Matador Milan Radovic begins his third season as an assistant coach for CSUN.

COMING BACK TO CSUN
CSUN returns 13 letter winners from a year ago. Redshirt sophomore Jamar Ricketts was named to the 2021 Big West Conference All-Freshman Team. He tied with Giovanni Aguilar for the team lead in goals scored with three. Ricketts was second on the squad in assists with two and points with eight. The New Jersey native took a team-high 33 shots and ranked seventh in the Big West in shots on goal (0.83) and 12th in the Big West in shots per game (1.84).

Redshirt sophomores Jordan Isibor and Arturo Reveles each scored two goals a year ago to tie for third on the squad. Two other returners, Michael Arrington, and Edson Palos scored a goal last season.

Oscar Cardenas, a redshirt sophomore, appeared in all 18 matches, started 12 times, and played 1,062 minutes, the sixth most on the team. He recorded his lone assist of the season during the Oct. 20 Cal State Fullerton match. Cardenas took 15 shots, the fourth most on the club.

Redshirt seniors Marvin Arias, Dylan Gonzalez, and Alex Lemus have combined to play 52 matches during their CSUN careers. Rounding out the returning field players are redshirt juniors Ethan Benham, Bryan Bustamante, and redshirt sophomore Hector Villaneuva.

Redshirt sophomore goalie Cooper Wenzel started six of eight appearances in 2021. He went 2-4 with 27 saves and a 2.06 goals against average. He was named Big West Conference of the Week on Nov. 1, 2021, as he made five saves and charted an assist in the 2-0 victory over No. 30 UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 30, 2021.

THE NEWCOMERS
CSUN welcomes 19 newcomers to the roster for 2022, 11 of which have previous collegiate playing experience. Grad transfer Michael Mullins and junior Mamadou Diallo come to Northridge from NCAA Division I programs.

Mullins played 37 times for St. Joseph's (Pa.) from 2019-21 along the backline. Diallo, a junior, helped lead St. Francis (N.Y.) to the 2020 Northeast Conference title as a defender as the Terriers advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Jack Rhead, a redshirt junior, comes to CSUN from Quincy University where he scored eight goals in earning third-team All-Conference honors in 2021. Redshirt sophomore Levin Gerhardt scored two goals and had two assists during his Shaw University stint. Redshirt junior Kanata Furutani began his career at Indian Hills Community College where he scored three times in 24 matches. He played last season at Lyon College where he was part of a team that advanced to the second round of the NAIA National Tournament. Sophomore Marley Edwards scored three goals and dished out four assists for Fresno Pacific last season.

Joining the Matadors from the junior college level are Kenneth Ayala (Oxnard College), AJ Johnson (Salt Lake CC), Matthieu Mayindu (Dodge City CC), Idriss Oubrik (Butte College), Adrian Sandoval (Bakersfield College).

Ayala was a first-team All-Conference selection a year ago after scoring eight goals and leading Oxnard to the second round of the CCCAA Tournament. Johnson was a part of the 2020 NJCAA National Champions at Salt Lake CC. He earned first-team All-Region honors last season. Johnson has played international soccer for the Zimbabwe U14 National Team, the Zimbabwe U17 National team, and Malawi U20 National Team.

Mayindu was named first-team All-Region and first-team All-Conference in both seasons of competition he participated in at Dodge City. Oubrik was named Golden Valley Conference Player of the Year, Golden Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year, and All-Region in 2021 after leading Butte College to a 14-3-3 record and the Golden Valley Championship. A 2021 first-team All-Conference selection, Sandoval appeared in 17 matches in goal, starting 14 times. He went 8-4-1 with a 1.41 goals against average, made 60 saves, and posted six shutouts.

The eight true freshmen on the CSUN roster are Merrick Cook, JT Danks, David Diaz, Eoin Kingsley, Anthony Luna, Sahar Ohayon, Enrique Pineda, and Jorge Solorzano.

Cook and Danks were teammates at Servite High School which won the 2022 CIF D1 Championship and ninth consecutive league title in 2022. Cook, a goalie, was selected first-team All-CIF and Trinity League Defensive MVP as a senior. Danks was also named first-team All-CIF as a senior.

Diaz was selected Los Angeles Daily News Player of the Year in both 2021 and 2022. He reset the Birmingham Charter High School record for most goals in a season with 33 in 2022. Diaz led Birmingham to three City final appearances, winning titles in 2019 and 2021. Diaz scored 22 goals as a junior as the team finished second in the Southern California Regional.

Kingsley enters the CSUN program from Buena High School while Luna comes to Northridge from Hart High School. A native of Afula, Israel, Ohayon was a member of the country's U18 national team and served as the captain of the U19 national team. A teammate of Diaz at Birmingham, Pineda was named 2021 Division I Player of the Year. Solorzano was chosen 2022 Golden League Offensive Player of the Year and 2021 CIF Division 4 Southern Section Player of the Year for Palmdale High School.

THE SCHEDULE
Upon the conclusion of exhibition play, the Matadors open the season on Aug. 25 at home against San Diego State. CSUN hosts SIUE on Aug. 28 before heading out on the road for the first time at Pacific (Sept. 1) and UNLV (Sept. 4) before coming home to host Utah Valley on Sept. 8.

The Matadors travel to No. 19 Missouri State on Sept. 16 before completing the non-conference slate at home against Saint Mary's (Sept. 21) and UTRGV (Sept. 24). The Big West schedule begins Sept. 28 at home against UC Riverside. The Big West Tournament begins Nov. 2 with the semifinals set for Nov. 5 with the finals scheduled for Nov. 12.

ABOUT USD
The Toreros struggled to a 2-15 record in 2021 and were selected seventh in the preseason West Coast Conference poll. Junior Nicklas Clausen led San Diego in goals (7) and points (18) last season.

ABOUT CAL POLY POMONA
The Broncos are ranked fifth in the preseason United Soccer Coaches Division II Top 25 poll. Cal Poly Pomona went 14-5-4 in 2021, advancing to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II Tournament where the Broncos lost to fellow CCAA member Cal State LA, the eventual Division II National Champions. Senior Jerry Ramirez is the top returning scorer with 10 goals. His 24 points from last season were tied for the second most on the team.

ABOUT CSDH
The Toros, who are conference rivals with Cal Poly Pomona, went 10-6-1 in 2021. Brandon Lee is the top returning goal scorer for CSDH, with five goals. Dylan De Baldo returns in goal. He was 9-3-1 last season.

~#UniteTheValley~

CSUN Men's Soccer To Open Exhibition Slate This Week

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Players Mentioned

Giovanni Aguilar

Marvin Arias

Michael Arrington

Kenneth Ayala

Ethan Benham

Bryan Bustamante

Oscar Cardenas

Merrick Cook

JT Danks

Mamadou Diallo

David Diaz

Marley Edwards

Kanata Furutani

Levin Gerhardt

Dylan Gonzalez

Jordan Isibor

AJ Johnson

Eoin Kingsley

Alex Lemus

Anthony Luna

Matthieu Mayindu

Michael Mullins

Sahar Ohayon

Idriss Oubrik

Edson Palos

Enrique Pineda

Arturo Reveles

Jack Rhead

Jamar Ricketts

Adrian Sandoval

Jorge Solorzano

Cooper Wenzel