Friday, August 24
Poughkeepsie, NY
4:00 pm
UC Riverside
at
Marist
Photo by: Anthony C. Porta
Men's Soccer Travels To The Empire State For 2012 Season Opener
8/22/2012 9:36:00 AM | Men's Soccer
| Aug. 24 | at Marist | Live Stats / Video | Purchase Tickets |
| Aug. 26 | at Iona | Live Stats / Video | Purchase Tickets |
Poughkeepsie, NY—The UC Riverside Men's Soccer Team begins building on the success of last year's record-setting campaign this weekend as the Highlanders open the 2012 season with matches at Marist (Friday, August 24 at 4 pm PT) and Iona (Sunday, August 26 at 10 am).
The 2011 version of the Highlanders advanced to its first-ever Big West Conference Tournament setting a program Division I era record for wins in the process. They finished the season ranked 39th in the nation via the NCAA's RPI, but were left out of the 48-team NCAA Tournament.
UC Riverside must try and replace the goal scoring output of Cesar Diaz-Pizarro (9 goals in 2011) who is now plying his trade at the professional level. They also will have a new face in goal as Cody Suppé, Nick Goldreich and Alex Abelson all graduated a year ago.
This is the first time the Highlanders have tangled with either the Red Foxes or the Gaels. Marist is a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, and went 8-7-5 in 2011. Leading scorer Stephan Brossard returns for his senior campaign after scoring seven goals and dishing out six assists a year ago.
The Gaels went 15-4-1 in 2011 falling 1-0 to Manhattan in the semifinals of the MAAC Championship. That defeat cost Iona an opportunity at an NCAA bid as they finished the season ranked 57th in the nation in the NCAA RPI. This season, TopDrawerSoccer.com has them ranked 40th on their preseason list of NCAA Tournament contenders.
| Highlanders at Red Foxes & Gaels Match Capsule | |||
| UC Riverside | Marist | Iona | |
|
2011 Record & Stats |
9-6-4 |
8-7-5 | 15-4-1 |
|
2012 Record & Stats |
0-0-0 | 0-0-0 | 0-0-0 |
| Schedule | Schedule | Schedule | |
| Roster | Roster | Roster | |
| Conference | Big West | MAAC | MAAC |
| Current Streak | L 1 | L 1 | L 1 |
|
Most Recent Box Score |
N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Next Opponent |
8/31 vs. Detroit-Mercy |
8/28 vs. Northeastern |
8/24 vs. Adelphi |
|
Top Returning Scorer (2011 Stats) |
 Leslie Junior 3 gls, 1 asts 7 pts |
 Brossard Senior 7 gls, 6 asts 20 pts |
 Castellanos Junior 3 gls, 14 asts 20 pts |
|
Top Returning Keeper (2011 Stats) |
N/A |
 Ruocco Junior 1 match 4.00 gaa, 1 sv |
 Barbero Sophomore 20 matches 0.97 gaa, 62 svs |
|
All-Time Record vs. |
0-0-0 First Meeting |
0-0-0 First Meeting |
|
| Current Streak | N/A | N/A | |
GAME NOTES
POSTSEASON PLAY
The Highlanders advanced to their first-ever Big West Tournament last year, setting Division I era records for wins in the process. They were shut out of the NCAA Tournament, however, despite an RPI of 39.
RPI
The Highlanders rose to as high as 30th in the nation a year ago based on the NCAA's RPI rankings which is the highest the program has ever been ranked.
MEAT IN THE SEATS
Attendance at UC Riverside home matches in 2011 was already up before a crowd of 2,016 saw the team upset #7 UC Santa Barbara on October 28, 2011 by a 3-1 score.
That total more than tripled the previous benchmark of 638 set on November 3, 2010 in a 1-0 win over UC Davis. It also pushed UCR's season attendance past the previous program record of 3,036 set in 2010.
At the next home match, the Highlanders had 852 in attendance—the second highest total in school history—as they squared off against #7 UC Irvine. UCR finished the year averaging a program best 773 fans per contest..
FEELING A LITTLE RANK
The Highlanders 3-1 win over #7 UC Santa Barbara on September 28, 2011 was the program's third win against a ranked opponent in the 10-plus year Division I history of the program. A few weeks later, they picked up their fourth-ever win against top-25 competition as they beat #15 UCSB, 3-2 on the road. And on October 29, they added a third win over a ranked opponent upsetting #9 UC Irvine on the road, 3-2.
UC Riverside's first win against a ranked opponent was a 2-0 decision at #21 San Diego State on September 4, 2007. They followed that up with a 2-1 victory over #7 UC Davis on October 18, 2008.
A NEW SET OF GOALS
Last season, senior Cesar Diaz-Pizarro scored 32.1 percent (9 of 28) of the team's goals, leaving the Highlanders in need of some replacement scoring for 2012.
POSTSEASON HARDWARE
Cesar Diaz-Pizarro was named Big West Co-Offensive Player of the Year in 2011, and Junior Gonzalez earned Coach of the Year honors.
Diaz-Pizarro finished his UC Riverside career ranked first or second in a number of key offensive categories.
Career Points
| 57 | Luc Harrington | 23 goals, 11 assists | 2001-04 |
| 48 | Cesar Diaz Pizarro | 20 goals, 8 assists | 2008-11 |
Career Goals
| 23 | Luc Harrington | 2001-04 |
| 20 | Cesar Diaz Pizarro | 2008-11 |
Career Game-Winning Goals
| 8 | Cesar Diaz Pizarro | 2008-11 |
| 7 | Luc Harrington | 2001-04 |
Single Season Points
| 22 | Luc Harrington | 9 goals, 4 assists | 2004 |
| 21 | Cesar Diaz Pizarro | 9 goals, 3 assists | 2011 |
Single Season Goals
| 9 | Cesar Diaz PIzarro | 2011 |
| 9 | Luc Harrington | 2004 |
| 9 | Scott Barnett | 2004 |
Single Season Game-Winning Goals
| 4 | Cesar Diaz Pizarro | 2011 |
| 3 | Three Occasions |
LENDING A HELPING FOOT
The Highlanders recorded 25 assists during the 2010 season which is the most in the Division I history of the program. They tied that mark in 2011.
| Single-Season Team Assists | ||
| 25 | 2010 | |
| 25 | 2011 | |
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
UC Riverside's 28 goals in 2012 tied the program's Division I era record originally set by the 2004 squad.
| Single-Season Team Goals | ||
| 28 | 2004 | |
| 28 | 2011 | |
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
With a pair of wins in Florida on September 23 and 25 of 2011, the Highlanders improved their non-conference record on the year to 5-2-1 which gave them the most non-conference wins in the history of the program and just the second winning record during their non-conference season during the team's Division I history (2007, 3-2-2).
HOME COOKING
The Highlanders ran their program-record home unbeaten streak to six matches on September 28, 2011 with a 3-1 win over #7 UC Santa Barbara. That streak came to an end on October 12 with a loss to the #7 ranked UC Irvine Anteaters.
DON'T LOOK ETHEL!
UC Riverside ran its overall unbeaten streak to six matches with a 3-1 upset victory over #7 UC Santa Barbara on September 28, 2011. The streak came to an end on October 1 in a 1-0 loss at UC Davis. It is the longest unbeaten streak in the 10-plus year history of the program.
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