UC Riverside
CSU Bakersfield
UC Riverside Men's Soccer Heads To Bakersfield Thursday, Hosts UNLV Sunday
9/19/2013 12:36:00 PM | Men's Soccer
| September 19 | 6:00 pm | at CSU Bakersfield | Live Stats | Purchase Tickets |
| September 22 | 6:00 pm | vs. UNLV | Live Stats | Call (951) 827-4653 Tickets |
Bakersfield, CA—The UC Riverside Men's Soccer Team looks to extend its unbeaten streak (4-0-1) this week as the Highlanders visit CSU Bakersfield on Thursday at 6 pm PT and host UNLV on Sunday at 6 pm.
The Highlanders held their spot among the ranks of the unbeaten after battling San Diego to a scoreless tie last Friday (Box Score/Recap). Goalkeeper KC John tied his season high with five saves in the match.
CSU Bakersfield is 2-3-0 on the season coming off back-to-back losses on the road against nationally ranked Indiana and Louisville. The Roadrunners started their season 2-1-0 with their wins coming over Sacramento State and UC Davis in the Copa de Causeway Tournament held earlier this month.
The 'Runners and Highlanders have met on six previous occasions with the Roadrunners winning five of the six matches, with the sixth being a tie in the first-ever meeting between the two programs in 2007. Their most recent match was played on September 23, 2012 with CSU Bakersfield winning, 2-0 (Box Score/Recap).
UNLV fell to No. 22 ranked Gonzaga by a 2-0 score this past weekend dropping the Rebels to 2-3-0 on the season. Their two wins came the weekend prior at the UNLV Nike Invitational where they upended Bradley and Georgia State. The Highlanders were the fourth team in the tournament, and also beat Bradley and Georgia State. The Rebels were declared the tournament champions based on scoring differential.
Sunday's meeting is the ninth in the all-time history between UNLV and UCR. The two programs last met on September 9th, 2012 as UC Riverside won, 4-3, in double overtime (Box Score/Recap).
| Highlanders vs. Roadrunners & Rebels Match Capsules | ||||||
| UC Riverside | CSU Bakersfield | UNLV | ||||
| 2013 Record & Stats | 4-0-1 | 2-3-0 | 2-3-0 | |||
| Schedule | Schedule | Schedule | ||||
| Roster | Roster | Roster | ||||
| Conference | Big West | WAC | WAC | |||
| Current Streak | T 1 | L 2 | L 1 | |||
| Most Recent Box Score | T, 0-0 (2OT) vs. San Diego | L, 4-2 vs. Louisville | L, 2-0 vs. Gonzaga | |||
| Next Opponent | September 22 vs. UNLV | September 27 vs. UC Irvine | September 20 vs. CSUN | |||
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Top Scorer 2013 Stats x x x x |
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 |
Romario Lomeli Freshman 3 goals, 1 assist 7 points |
 |
Eduardo Caldaza Sophomore 4 goals 8 points |
 |
Rodrigo Fuentes Sophomore 3 goals, 3 assists 9 points |
|
Top Goalkeeper 2013 Stats x x x x |
 |
KC John Junior 5 matches 0.38 GAA, 14 saves |
 |
Anthony Perez Sophomore 5 matches 2.40 GAA, 23 saves |
 |
Joe Vitale Senior 5 matches 2.20 GAA, 14 saves |
| All-Time Record vs. | 0-5-1 (All-Time Results) | 5-3-0 (All-Time Results) | ||||
| Current Streak vs. | L 5 | W 2 | ||||
GAME NOTES
UNBEATEN
It's deja vu all over again as for the second season in a row, the Highlanders are undefeated through their first five matches of the season and one of just 24 teams without a loss in 2013. Last year, UC Riverside won its first seven matches, and was one of only six teams in the nation with unblemished records heading into the weekend of September 21-23, but a 2-0 loss to CSU Bakersfield ended the Highlanders perfect run.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
If defense truly wins championships, the Highlanders are setting themselves up for a fantastic season. UC Riverside has allowed just two goals in five matches on the season for a goals against average of 0.38. That ranks ninth in the nation. KC John has played between the pipes for UCR in all 470 minutes this season, and his individual goals against average is 11th lowest in the country.
HEADED TO THE POLLS
The Highlanders received their highest-ever national rankings last season, rising as high as 19th in the NSCAA poll. In the September 9, 2013 TopDrawerSoccer poll, UC Riverisde was receiving consideration for the first time this season, and for the week of September 16, the Highlanders received votes in the Soccer Times and NSCAA.Continental Tire polls.
| (2012) Week Of ... |
Soccer America |
Soccer Times |
NSCAA |
College Soccer News |
Top Drawer Soccer |
| Preseason | |||||
| Aug. 27 | RV | RV | |||
| Sept. 3 | RV | RV | RV | ||
| Sept. 10 | RV | 25 | 30 | ||
| Sept. 17 | 25 | 23 | 19 | 24 | |
| Sept. 24 | RV | 24 | 24 | ||
| Oct. 1 | RV | RV | 26 | ||
| Oct. 7 |
| (2013) Week Of ... |
Soccer America |
Soccer Times |
NSCAA |
College Soccer News |
Top Drawer Soccer |
| Sept. 2 | |||||
| Sept. 9 | RC | ||||
| Sept. 16 | RV | RV | RC |
BACK-TO-BACK
The Highlanders recorded their first-ever winning season as a Division I program in 2011, and made it back-to-back winning campaigns in 2012 posting a 10-8-0 mark. Those 10 victories also established a Division I-era, single-season record for the program.
DOUBLE-DIPPING
In the Highlanders' September 8 victory over Bradley, Ivan Garcia became the first member of the Highlanders to score two goals in a match this season. The last UC Riverside player to do it was Richie Osborne who scored a pair at UC Irvine on October 31, 2012.
FIRING BLANKS
The Highlanders broke the program's Division I era record for consecutive shutout minutes a year ago by holding the opposition scoreless for 290 minutes and eight seconds spanning four matches and dating back to the end of the 2011 campaign. They nearly bested that mark this season with a streak of 280:40 straight scoreless minutes that began in the final match of the 2012 season.
UC Riverside recorded five shutouts in the team's first seven matches in 2012, but didn't record a shutout over the final 11 matches of the year.
LENDING A HELPING FOOT
The Highlanders 40 assists during the 2012 season smashed the program record for the most in the Division I history of the program, besting the 2010 and 2011 squads which recorded 25 assists each.
| Single-Season Team Assists | ||
| 40 | 2012 | |
| 25 | 2010 | |
| 25 | 2011 | |
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
UC Riverside's 37 goals in 2012 also obliterated the program's Division I era record originally set by the 2004 squad and later tied by the 2011 version.
| Single-Season Team Goals | ||
| 37 | 2012 | |
| 28 | 2004 | |
| 28 | 2011 | |
EZ-PASS
Last season, Juan Mendoza, Eric Gonzalez and Otis Earle each found their way into UC Riverisde's single-season assist records list finishing tied for first (8), tied for third (7) and fifth (6) respectively.
THREE OF A KIND
Juan Mendoza was credited with three assists in the Highlanders 4-1 victory over UC Irvine on October 17, 2012 becoming just the fourth player in the Division I history of the program to accomplish the feat.
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
With a 7-1-0 mark in non-conference matches in 2012, the Highlanders set the program record for non-conference wins in a season established the previous season when UC Riverside finished the non-conference portion of their season with a 5-2-1 mark. Over the past three seasons, UCR is 16-3-1 in non-conference matches.
A NEW SET OF GOALS
In 2011, 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 used a balanced attack on the offensive side of the pitch last year as 14 different players were responsible for the Highlanders 37 goals.
POSTSEASON PLAY
The Highlanders advanced to their first-ever Big West Tournament in 2011, setting what was then the Division I era record 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 in 2011 based on the NCAA's RPI rankings which is the highest the program has ever been ranked.
