Fullerton, CA—The UC Riverside Men's Soccer Team fell from the ranks of the unbeaten Saturday evening as Cal State Fullerton handed the Highlanders their first Big West defeat of the season, 1-0.

The Titans controlled the match in the first half outshooting UC Riverside 12-2 through the first 45 minutes. Neither team found the back of the net, however, and the teams entered the locker room at the break tied at zero.

Fullerton (6-8-1, 2-3-1) broke through in the 76th minute when UC Riverside goalkeeper Victor Morales (Bellflower, CA) was unable to control Ronaldo Pineda's shot from the left side, and Jacob Perez pounded home the rebound to put the Titans on top.

Cal State Fullerton tried to run out the clock, but with 3:17 remaining, were whistled for a foul in their defensive 18, setting up a UC Riverside penalty kick. Tyler Miguel (Fair Oaks, CA) stepped up to take the shot, but Titans goalkeeper David Elias guessed correctly, diving to his right to come up with the save,

The loss drops the Highlanders to 9-5-1 on the season and 4-1-1 in the Big West. Despite the defeat, UC Riverside maintained its six-point lead in the South Division as UC Irvine upended second place CSUN, 4-3 Saturday.

The Highlanders return home for their next two matches beginning with a Wednesday, October 19 meeting with the Matadors. Kick off is scheduled for 7 pm PT.