Sunday, September 23
Riverside, CA
7:00 pm
UC Riverside
vs
CSU Bakersfield
Photo by: Gabriel L. Acosta
Men's Soccer Hosts CSU Bakersfield In Final Non-Conference Match Of Year
9/19/2012 10:12:00 AM | Men's Soccer
| Sept. 23 | 7:00 pm | vs. CSU Bakersfield | Live Stats | Purchase Tickets |
Riverside—The UC Riverside Men’s Soccer Team puts its undefeated record on the line this weekend as the Highlanders host CSU Bakersfield in their last non-conference match of the season Sunday, September 23 at 7 pm PT.
Sunday is Move In Day for many of UC Riverside's 20,000-plus students, and fans attending that day's soccer match will be directed to park in Lot 19 (campus map) on the south end of the stadium. Attendees should allow extra time to make their way to campus and to the UC Riverside Soccer Stadium.
UCR improved to 7-0-0 with a pair of wins last weekend, jumping six spots to number 19 in the nation in the most recent NSCAA/Continental Tire poll. The Highlanders are also ranked in the top 25 by Soccer Times (No. 23), College Soccer News (No. 24) and Soccer America (No. 25).
The Highlanders recent victories came in the form of a pair of shutouts at the UCR/Courtyard by Marriott Soccer Invitational. This marks the teams fourth and fifth shutouts of the season for the team, one away from tying the 2007 squad for the most shutouts in the team's 12 year Division I history.
The weekend began with a 5-0 victory over North Florida (box score/story) showcasing not just the Highlanders defense, but their balanced offense as each of the five goals were scored by different players. UCR finished off the weekend with a 1-0 win over Nebraska Omaha (box score/story).
This will be the sixth meeting between the Roadrunners and UCR. CSUB outscored the Highlanders 5-1 in their last meeting on August 27, 2011 (box score/story).
| UCR vs. CSU Bakersfield Match Capsules | ||
| UC Riverside | CSU Bakersfield | |
| 2012 Record & Stats | 7-0-0 | 2-1-3 |
| Schedule | Schedule | |
| Roster | Roster | |
| Conference | Big West | Mountain Pacific |
| Current Streak | W 7 | W 1 |
|
Most Recent Box Score |
W, 1-0 vs. Nebraska Omaha |
W, 4-0 vs. Sacramento State |
| Next Opponent |
Sept. 28 vs. UCSB |
Sept. 29 vs. UNLV |
| Top Scorer |
 Long Junior 4 goals, 1 assist 9 points |
 Zardes Freshman 2 goals, 1 assist 5 points |
|
Top Keeper |
 Khosravi Freshman 7 matches 22 svs, 0.59 gaa |
 Shannon Senior 6 matches 32 svs, 0.60 gaa |
|
All-Time Record vs. |
0-4-1 (Results) |
|
| Current Streak | L 4 | |
GAME NOTES
UNDEFEATED
UC Riverside is 7-0-0 for the first time in its 12 year Division I history. The Highlanders are one of only six teams in the nation, and the only team in the Big West, with an unblemished record: UC Riverside (7-0-0), Cornell (5-0-0), High Point (7-0-0), Notre Dame (7-0-0), Marquette (7-0-0), and Old Dominion (6-0-0).
HEADED TO THE POLLS
| Week Of ... |
Soccer America |
Soccer Times |
NSCAA |
College Soccer News |
Top Drawer Soccer |
| Preseason | |||||
| Aug. 27 | RV | ||||
| Sept. 3 | RV | RV | |||
| Sept. 10 | 25 | 30 | |||
| Sept. 17 | 25 | 23 | 19 | 24 |
The Highlanders continued their climb into and up the national rankings this week as they broke into the Soccer America and Soccer Times polls for the first time in their history, and moved up six spots in both the NSCAA and College Soccer News polls.
Last year marked the first time UC Riverside received votes in any poll picking up a single vote in the Soccer Times Poll on October 31, and one vote in the NSCAA Poll on November 15.
FIRING BLANKS
The last time the Highlanders recorded consecutive shutouts prior to this season was October 10 and 13, 2007 when they blanked Cal State Fullerton 1-0 and played to a scoreless tie at Cal State Northridge.
UC Riverside has never recorded three straight shutouts.
The Highlanders broke the program's Division I era record for consecutive shutout minutes by holding the opposition scoreless for 290 minutes and eight second spanning four matches and dating back to the end of the 2011 season.
The Highlanders already have five shutouts in 2012 after recording three shutouts in all of 2011. The team record for shutouts in a season is six set in 2006.
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.
UCR has used a balanced attack thus far on the offensive side of the pitch as 11 different players are responsible for the Highlanders 20 goals on the season. Aaron Long's four goals lead the squad.
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.
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, and already have 18 assists in seven matches in 2012.
| Single-Season Team Assists | ||
| 25 | 2010 | |
| 25 | 2011 | |
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
UC Riverside's 28 goals in 2011 tied the program's Division I era record originally set by the 2004 squad. The Highlanders have 20 goals in just seven matches so far in 2012.
| Single-Season Team Goals | ||
| 28 | 2004 | |
| 28 | 2011 | |
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
With seven non-conference wins to start the 2012 season, the Highlanders set the program record for non-conference wins in a season established set a year ago. In 2011, UC Riverside finished the season with a 5-2-1 record against non-Big West opponents which gave the Highlanders just their 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 Division I-era, 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 second longest unbeaten streak in the Division I history of the program behind the current seven match winning streak to start the 2012 campaign.
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Monday, May 04
UCR Student-Athletes cheer on our students.
Friday, May 01
UCR Athletics Director Introductory Full Press Conference
Tuesday, March 24
Athletics Director Greg Paules Introductory Presentation Recap
Tuesday, March 24
