Riverside, CA—The UC Riverside Men's Soccer Team (2-12-1, 2-5-1) looks to secure a postseason berth for the fourth time in five seasons as it hosts UC Irvine (7-7-3, 2-4-2) on Wednesday, October 25, and CSUN (9-6-2, 4-2-2), this Saturday, October 28 in the final week of the regular season. Both games will kickoff at 7 pm PT. Prior to Saturday's match, six Highlander careers will be honored for Senior Day.
GAME NOTES
RACE FOR THE POSTSEASON
After securing a point in a 1-1 draw in their road conference finale at Cal State Fullerton (
box score/
recap), the Highlanders head into their final two matches just one point behind their next opponent—UC Irvine (8 points)—for the No. 3 seed in the Big West South Division. A win over the Anteaters this Wednesday would move UC Riverside into playoff position heading into its regular season finale on Saturday. A loss would knock the Highlanders out of playoff contention.
The top three teams in each division will qualify for the Big West Tournament, which begins on November 1. The Highlanders can still finish anywhere from the No. 2-4 seed. If they finish with the same amount of points as UC Irvine and/or Cal State Fullerton, the following tiebreaker formulas will be applied in this order:
1. The winner of the regular season Conference games between the tied teams shall be declared the higher seed.
2. If the two teams are still tied, the team with the greatest goal differential in the head-to-head games between the tied teams shall be declared the higher seed.
3. If the two teams are still tied, the team with the most goals scored in road games within the division shall be declared the higher seed.
| Big West Men's Soccer Standings |
| NORTH DIVISION |
|
Team |
W |
L |
T |
Pts |
| 1 |
UC Davis |
5 |
2 |
1 |
16 |
| 2 |
UC Santa Barbara |
4 |
2 |
2 |
14 |
| 3 |
Sacramento State |
4 |
3 |
1 |
13 |
| 4 |
Cal Poly |
2 |
5 |
1 |
7 |
| SOUTH DIVISION |
| 1 |
CSUN |
4 |
2 |
2 |
14 |
| 2 |
Cal State Fullerton |
3 |
3 |
2 |
11 |
| 3 |
UC Irvine |
2 |
4 |
2 |
8 |
| 4 |
UC Riverside |
2 |
5 |
1 |
7 |
HOME SWEET HOME
Out of the Highlanders' 14 matches so far this season, only four have been played at home. They boast a 7-4-1 record at home since the start of last season, going 2-2 at UC Riverside Soccer Stadium in 2017. UCR has gone 3-2-0 against UC Irvine at home since 2012, including a 2-1 win in 2014 over an Anteater side that was ranked No. 2 nationally (
box score/
recap).
The Highlanders have conceded just three goals at home during Big West play, tied with CSUN for the fewest in the conference. Their 1.00 goals allowed per match at home is tied for the second-best mark in the Big West.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
In UC Riverside's eight Big West games thus far, eight goals have been scored by eight different Highlanders. That equals the number of goal scorers UCR had in its 2016 Big West campaign. UC Davis (11) and Sacramento State (9) are the only teams with more goal scorers than UC Riverside during conference.
THE SAVIOR
Redshirt senior goalkeeper
Vincent Morales has had at least four saves in eight consecutive matches. That is the longest streak of any keeper in the program's Division I history. Morales' longest previous streak of four save matches had been five from September 23-October 6, 2016.
| Consecutive Matches With 4+ Saves |
| Matches |
Player |
Saves |
Dates |
| 8 |
Vincent Morales |
42 |
Sep. 28-Pres |
| 6 |
Charles Alamo |
40 |
Aug. 29-Sep. 18, 2003 |
| 6 |
Cody Suppe |
39 |
Oct. 19-Nov. 9, 2011 |
| 6 |
Cody Suppe |
38 |
Sep. 4-Oct. 3, 2009 |
| 6 |
Nick Goldreich |
34 |
Sep. 16-Oct. 9, 2010 |
| 6 |
KC John |
29 |
Sep. 8-29, 2013 |
Morales leads the Big West this year in both saves per game (4.67) and total saves (70). His .737 save percentage during conference play ranks third. The Bellflower, California native has 193 career saves—third all-time at UCR.
| Most Saves, Career, Individual |
| Saves |
Player |
Year |
| 305 |
Charles Alamo |
2003-07 |
| 218 |
Ashkan Khosravi |
2012-15 |
| 193 |
Vincent Morales |
2013-Pres |
| 155 |
Cody Suppé |
2008-11 |
| 118 |
Josh Alexander |
2001-03 |
IT'S BEEN AN HONOR
Prior to Saturday's match, the Highlanders will honor the careers of six seniors who will be participating in their final home game. That includes current players
Vincent Morales,
Cesar Jerez,
Ricardo Ruiz,
Emilio Huerta,
James Alewine III, along with former player and current student manager
Francisco Ramirez.
OUT OF THE GATES
UC Riverside avoided being shutout in each of its first four conference matches, just one shy of the program record for the most consecutive games with a goal to open the conference season.
Games with a Goal
to Open Big West |
Goals |
Dates |
| 5 |
10 |
Sep. 29-Oct. 12, 2016 |
| 4 |
5 |
Sep. 28-Oct. 7, 2017 |
| 3 |
4 |
Oct. 3-Oct. 10, 2007 |
| 2 |
8 |
Sep. 28-30, 2012 |
| 2 |
2 |
Sep. 30-Oct. 7, 2009 |
GETTING ON THE SCOREBOARD
The Highlanders have scored at least one goal in seven of their last nine outings. From September 24-October 27, they scored in five consecutive matches, tying for the program's fourth-longest run since 2013.
Consecutive Games
with a Goal |
Goals |
Dates (Since 2013) |
| 14 |
24 |
Aug. 26-Oct. 12, 2016 |
| 7 |
12 |
Sep. 4-25, 2015 |
| 7 |
10 |
Oct. 18-Nov. 5, 2014 |
| 5 |
8 |
Oct. 26-Nov. 12, 2013 |
| 5 |
6 |
Sep. 24-Oct. 7, 2017 |
THE CATALYST
Since notching a goal at Cal Poly in the Highlanders' conference opener on September 28 (
box score/
recap), sophomore forward
Anthony Lopez has held team-highs in points (6), assists (2) and shots (21). His 1.91 shots per game are good for the sixth-highest average in the Big West. Against Oregon State on September 3 (
box score/
recap), he provided UC Riverside with its first two-assist performance since
Romario Lomeli did it against UC Irvine on October 12, 2016.
BIG WEST SUCCESS
Last year, the Highlanders tied the program record for Big West wins, finishing with four victories for the third time in four years. Their nine total wins were just one shy of the program's Division I record for wins in a season.
| Most Big West Wins, Season, Team |
| W-L-T |
Year |
| 4-3-3 |
2011 |
| 4-3-3 |
2014 |
| 4-5-1 |
2004 |
| 4-5-1 |
2013 |
| 4-5-1 |
2016 |
| Most Wins, Season, Team |
| W-L-T |
Year |
| 10-8-0 |
2012 |
| 9-8-3 |
2013 |
| 9-6-4 |
2011 |
| 9-10-1 |
2016 |
THE MAGIC NUMBER IS TWO
Since the 2011 season, the Highlanders are 41-4-2 when they score two or more goals in a match.
| Season |
Record Scoring Two-Plus Goals |
| 2017 |
2-2-0 |
| 2016 |
7-1-1 |
| 2015 |
6-0-0 |
| 2014 |
4-0-1 |
| 2013 |
6-0-0 |
| 2012 |
8-1-0 |
| 2011 |
8-0-0 |
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 advanced to their second conference tournament in 2012 by finishing third in the South Division of the Big West, and in 2014 season they earned the number one seed in the South Division. They returned to the conference tournament again in 2016 as the three seed in the South Division.
