Weekly Release (PDF)
THIS WEEK
The Titans hit the road in the final week of the regular season on Wednesday when they travel to Northridge, Calif., to take the pitch against CSUN, kick-off will be 7:00 p.m. at Matador Soccer Field. The game will be a must win for CSUN with Fullerton leading the Matadors by one point for the last spot in the Big West South Division standings.
QUICK HITS
• Cal State Fullerton head coach George Kuntz is in his first year with the Titans after spending 19 years at UC Irvine.
• In Cal State Fullerton's first win of the year, and its first win of the George Kuntz era at CSF, the Titans staged a 4-3 come-from-behind double overtime victory over then 14th-ranked Maryland, Baltimore County.
• Fullerton has totaled 27 goals this season, four more than last season's total, coming from 10 different players.
• With a win or a draw the Titans will advance to the conference playoffs while a loss would put the Titans in fourth place in the Big West South Division and they would miss the tournament for the second-straight season.
• CSF has 294 total shots this season, 32 more shots than second place UCSB (262).
• Fullerton continues its chase for the school record for most shutouts in a single season. The shutout of CSUN on Oct. 22 marked number seven on the season for the Titans. The 1993 Titan squad set the record, finishing with nine.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
Cal State Fullerton fans can follow the action as the Titans take on the Matadors, Wednesday at 7:00 p.m., at Matador Soccer Field by logging on to FullertonTitans.com
Live Stats.......FullertonTitans.com
Live Video......FullertonTitans.com
Live Audio.....FullertonTitans.com
OPPONENT & HISTORY
CSUN | 7:00 PM
Wednesday, Nov. 5 | Matador Soccer Field
Needing a victory against 14th-ranked UC Irvine last Saturday night to continue their chase toward a Big West Conference playoff spot, the Matadors beat the Anteaters 2-0.
Their win, coupled with a Fullerton draw against UC Riverside, sets up a winner-take-all situation for both the Matadors and the Titans in the regular-season finale Wednesday night at Matador Soccer Field. CSUN needs to secure another victory to extend its season as Fullerton is currently one point ahead in the South Division standings.
The Titans will have to slow down CSUN senior forward Sagi Lev-Ari if they want to continue their march toward conference playoffs. Lev-Ari currently leads the Big West in goals (11), goals per game (.61), and game winning goals (5). On Oct. 29th, Lev-Ari became the fourth player in conference history to score 40 goals in his career.
Head-to-Head: The Titans closed the series gap against the Matadors earlier this season, they are now 15-20-2 all-time.
Last Time Out: Fullerton earned a 1-0 win over CSUN on Oct. 22 at Titan Stadium on a game-winning goal by senior Marc Fenelus off an assist from fellow senior Ritchie Gonzalez.
BE A FOLLOWER
Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (CSUF.Athletics) and Twitter (@FullertonTitans). In addition, the men's soccer team has established its own Facebook and Twitter presence at Facebook.com/CSUFMensSoccer or at @CSUFMensSoccer.
PLAYOFF SCENARIOS
All of the Big West South Division playoff spots are still up for grabs. Coming into the games on Wednesday, CSUN and Cal State Fullerton are seperated by only one point in the standings. With a win on Wednesday, the Titans will secure second place and host a Big West playoff game regardless of the outcome of the UC Irvine and UC Riverside game. A tie will likely land them in the third place spot (barring some tiebreaker situations with UC Riverside) and see them on the road to open the playoffs. A loss would end the Titans season.
THANK YOU SENIORS
Twelve Titan student-athletes played their last regular season home game at Titan Stadium last Saturday night against UC Riverside. This year's senior class includes: (MF) Alex Cannas, (F) Marc Fenelus, (MF) Ritchie Gonzalez, (MF) Spencer Johnson, (MF) Garrett Losee, (D) Gabriel Quintero, (MF) Ian Ramos, (F) Amara Soumah, (MF) Mark Vasquez, (D) Jesse Vega, (D) Fermin Villalba, and (MF) Jordan Wolff.
QUALITY NOT QUANTITY
There have been five games this season where the Titans have amassed over 21 total shots in a game. Suprisingly, its record in those games is 1-2-2, with the one win coming on a 30-shot outburst against Pacific on Oct. 13.
ANYBODY'S GUESS
The 2014 season has not gone as the Big West experts had foreseen. CSUN was picked to top the South Division in the preseason poll, but is currently in last place with 10 points. However, by the end of Wednesday night, they could finish as high as second in the South Divison. Fullerton, who was picked last in the preseason Big West poll also has a chance to finish second in the South Division with a win coupled with a UC Irvine win or draw against UC Riverside.
DEFENSE DEFENSE DEFENSE
The Titans have now shut out seven of their 19 opponents on the year, leading the Big West in that category. The shutout of CSUN on Oct. 22 moved the 2014 Titan team into a tie for second place in the Fullerton school record book. Keepers David Rodriguez Elias and Jeff Salt have shared the workload in those games, Salt earning five shutouts and Rodriguez Elias netting two. The 2014 Titans are chasing the 1993 Titans who totaled nine shutouts in that year.
WEARING OUT THE CORNER
Cal State Fullerton prides itself on a possession oriented attacking style that leads to not only a lot of assists, but corner kicks as well. The Titans must be doing something right because they lead all Big West Conference teams in corner kicks on the season, earning a total of 120. The closest team to Fullerton in the Big West is UC Irvine with 106.
SENIORS LEAD THE WAY
Of the 10 Titans that have scored a goal this year, five of them are seniors playing their last season in a Titan uniform. In fact, the senior quartet of Marc Fenelus (7 goals), Amara Soumah (5), Garrett Losee (4), Ian Ramos (2) have accounted for 18 of the 27 goals on the year. This means the senior class has scored 66 percent of the goals for the Titans in 2014.
PREVIOUS BUFFALO WILD WINGS STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:
Sept. 22 - Sophomore defender Mitchell Bell scored the first goal of his Titan career leading Cal State Fullerton to a 1-0 shutout over Grand Canyon on Sept. 28. Bell's header, courtesy of a Robert Coronado cross, proved to be the game-winner in just the third minute as the defender went on to limit the Lopes to just three shots on goal.
Sept. 15 - Senior Garrett Losee scored two goals for the Titans during the Sept. 19 and 21 weekend home stand against Santa Clara and Nebraska-Omaha, both goals became game-winners. He still leads the team in goals (3) through eleven games.
Sept. 8 - Senior forward Marc Fenelus was the first Titan in any sport to earn the award. Fenelus scored two goals at the UNLV Nike Invitational, Sept. 12-14, including the game winner in Sunday's 4-3 upset of 14th-ranked UMBC, to earn the first Buffalo Wild Wings of Brea Student-Athlete of the Week honors.
ON THE BOARD EARLY
Mitchell Bell's goal in the third minute of play Sept. 28 against Grand Canyon was the earliest goal the Titans have scored all season, Marc Fenelus changed that with his goal in the 2nd minute of last Saturday's 2-2 double-overtime draw against UC Riverside.
LEADING AT THE HALF
It will be important for Cal State Fullerton to get off to a fast start in Wedneday nights do-or-die game against CSUN. The Titans are 6-0 in games where they take a lead into the start of the second half, but are only 1-6-3 when tied at half and 1-4-2 when going into the final half scoreless.
STATS
• Cal State Fullerton leads the league in corner kicks (120), total shots (294) and total assists (28), and are tied for first in shutouts (7).
• The Titans moved into first in the league with 303 fouls after their 31 foul outburst last Saturday night.
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
Cal State Fullerton senior Ian Ramos was selected to the Big West Preseason All-Conference Team as chosen by the league's coaches, it was announced on Aug. 21, 2014.
A native of Highland, Utah, Ramos is a two-time all-Big West honoree earning honorable mention accolades in 2013 after picking up first team honors in 2012.
NUMBERS GAME
• The Titans have 17 returning letterwinners and nine returning starters from last year's team, and have added 14 newcomers. Of the newcomers, five are transfers, three come from the junior college ranks and six are freshmen.
• Fullerton scored 23 goals and added 22 assists for 68 points in 2013, and six of the team's top scorers return in Ian Ramos (4 goals, 3 assists), Garrett Losee (3 goals, 1 assist), Amara Soumah (3 goals), Marc Fenelus (2 goals, 2 assists), Spencer Johnson (1 goal, 1 assist) and Alex Cannas (2 goals, 1 assists). In fact, the Titans return 97 percent of their scoring from a season ago.
WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK
Cal State Fullerton has been whistled for four fouls resulting in penalty kicks for opponents this season. Junior goalkeeper Jeff Salt has stopped 2-of-4 opponent PK attempts. The transfer from CSUSB made his first stop at San Diego on Sept. 1, and on Sept. 5 against San Francisco, made a save in the 24th minute as the game was tied 1-1.
KUNTZ ERA BEGINS
George Kuntz, a 26-year head coaching veteran, was appointed the eighth men's soccer head coach in Cal State Fullerton history, Athletic Director Jim Donovan announced on Dec. 16, 2013.
Kuntz joined Cal State Fullerton after serving 19 years as the men's head soccer coach at UC Irvine, turning the Anteaters into a perennial soccer power that have made four NCAA Tournament appearances in the last six years, winning four Big West Tournament championships (2008, 2009,2011, 2013) and three regular season titles (2008, 2010, 2011).Kuntz, a collegiate head coach no entering his 27th year was named the NSCAA/Adidas Far West Region Coach of the Year in (2006 and 2008) and has seen a number of players jump to the next level including 12 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and three on various U.S. National Teams.
His career record is 319-218-65, ranking second in Big West history with 141 victories as a member of the Big West Conference. In addition, his 62 Big West wins ranks third all-time.
INTERNATIONAL DUTY
Marc Fenelus competed in the 2014 Caribbean Cup for the Turks and Caicos Islands national team. Turks and Caicos suffered a 1-0 loss to Aruba and a 6-0 loss to French Guiana before the team's final match. In the 31st minute in a match against British Virgin Islands, Fenelus scored the team's first goal since 2008 as the team went on to a 2-0 victory.
HALL OF FAME
The most prolific scorer in the history of the men's soccer program, forward Mike Fox remains the "gold standard" when it comes to the Cal State Fullerton record books, embarking on an 11-year professional career following a standout four seasons with the Titans. He was inducted into the Cal State Fullerton Athletics Hall of Fame on Oct. 11, 2013.
Although records are incomplete from his freshman season in 1979, Fox is Fullerton's all-time leader in points with 119 and is the school record holder with 46 goals during a collegiate career that lasted until 1982. He holds three of the top 10 single-season scoring performances in school history, including a 40-point campaign as a senior in 1982 en route to second-team All-America honors on a career-high 17 goals and a total that ranks tied for second in a season and six assists.
Fox also ranks second on the all-time list with 26 assists, including a single-season record of 13 assists as a sophomore in 1980 that still stands today.
