CSUN at Cal State Fullerton
Wednesday, Oct. 26 | 7 P.M. PT
Titan Stadium | Fullerton, CA
Live Stats: fullertontitans.com
Live Stream: fullertontitans.com
Series: CSUN leads 17-22-4
Cal State Fullerton at UC Irvine
Saturday, Oct. 29 | 7 P.M. PT
Anteater Stadium | Irvine, CA
Live Stats: ucirvinesports.com
Live Stream: ucirvinesports.com
Series: CSUF leads 22-24-8
FULLERTON, Calif. -- Trailing by only one point for the top spot in the Big West South, the Titans face division leader CSUN at Titan Stadium on Wednesday at 7 p.m. PT and battle UC Irvine in their final conference match of the year at Anteater Stadium on Saturday at 7 p.m. PT.
Wednesday's match against the Matadors will be senior night as we will honor all nine seniors on this year's squad prior to the start of the match at 6:40 p.m. PT.
RUNDOWN vs. CSUN:
-After drawing at CSUN a couple weeks ago, the Titans host the Matadors on Wednesday at Titan Stadium. The match will begin at 7 p.m. PT, but fans are encouraged to arrive around 6:30 p.m. for senior night festivities as it will be the final regular season match of the season at Titan Stadium.
-In the first battle between the two schools in Northridge, the Titans hit first as Rei Dorwart laid a cross into the box that found the feet of Alex Heilmann who put a strike into the back net to give CSUF a 1-0 in the 63rd minute. One red card later, the Matadors were down to 10 men on the pitch but found an equalizer in the 79th minute as Bar Shem Tov took a Fullerton turnover and made the Titans pay with a strike that went by David Elias to tie the score at 1-1 and force overtime. Both teams had a few chances in overtime but neither converted and the match ended in a tie.
-With the CSUF win over UCR, CSUN now sits atop the South Division by one point (14) while the Titans and Highlanders are tied for second in the South with 13 points a piece.
RUNDOWN vs. UC Irvine:
-Following a tough-match with CSUN at Titan Stadium on Wednesday, the Titans hit the road for conference play one final time this regular season to take on UC Irvine at 7 p.m. PT on Saturday night. The match will be the last conference regular season contest of the year, prior to the Big West Tournament.
-In the last meeting, the Titans exploded for three goals at Titan Stadium as they defeated the Anteaters, 3-1. Alex Heilmann got the night started quickly with a header off a free kick from Robert Coronado to put the Titans up 1-0 in the ninth minute. CSUF defender Corentin Ohlmann took a cross from Ross McPhie in the center of the box and put a cheeky shot in the net to extend the Titan lead to 2-0. After a UC Irvine goal just two minutes later, Oscar Torres sealed the win for the Titans with a goal in the 83rd minute to give Fullerton a 3-1 edge.
-UC Irvine has dropped its last two matches after defeating CSUN on Oct. 15 at home, 4-3.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
-CSUF's Alex Heilmann (F, Sr.): With three goals in his past four matches, Heilmann is starting to hit his stride in conference play as the senior was named College Soccer News' National Player of the Week and Big West Offensive Athlete of the Week on Monday.
-CSUF's Ross McPhie (MF, So.): McPhie has been a key part to the Titan attack taking off in the past four matches as the sophomore has continuously put beautiful crosses into the center of the box for the CSUF forwards to put on goal.
HONORING OUR SENIORS
The Titans will honor the 2016-17 seniors with a ceremony prior to the start of their final regular season home match against CSUN on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. PT. The senior night festivities will begin at 6:40 p.m. as all nine seniors will be honored on the field. This year's senior class includes Sean Bieker (GK), David Elias (GK), Alex Heilmann (F), Oscar Torres (MF), Ruben Alvarez (MF), Edgar Rodriguez (F), Jacob Perez (F), Mitchell Bell (D) and Ricardo Covarrubias (D).
Goalkeepers Bieker and Elias have been crucial to the amazing Titan defense the last few seasons. Torres and Alvarez each have had significant playing time this year in the midfield and have made the most of it with some stellar passing. Rodriguez and Perez have been crucial to the Titan attack in creating strong chances at forward. Defenders Mitchell Bell and Ricardo Covarrubias have been everything you can ask out of a defender by making the right tackle and working hard every single day. It will be hard to say goodbye to this year's group but one this is certain: they will always be Titans.
PROVIDING A SPARK
Over the last few matches, underclassmen Jacob Perez, Rei Dorwart, Michael Lopez and Ronaldo Pineda have proven to be a huge spark both in the lineup and off the bench. Perez scored his first career goal as a Titan against UC Riverside last Saturday, which proved to be the winner. Dorwart has been unbelievable in since getting his first dose of college soccer back on Sept. 18 against St. Mary's.
In the month of October, the freshman has produced two assists in crucial moments as he assisted on Ross McPhie's goal to tie the score vs. UCSB at home and Alex Heilmann's goal last Wednesday against CSUN to give the Titans a late lead in the match. Pineda has been a big part of the Fullerton attack in the last two matches after not appearing in the previous five. Against CSUN and UCR, the sophomore has put up a combined 10 shots (two on goal) and produced the assist to Perez' winner. Finally, Lopez has started the last six matches for the Titans and has been defending well with the rest of the Fullerton backline who have only surrendered one goal in the past 200 minutes.
CHASING HISTORY!
Currently at 16 career clean sheets, David Elias sits just three shutouts away from the Fullerton career shutouts record, which was set by Mike Ammann from 1991-93 who had 19. The senior leader added a shutout to his total this weekend after the Titans defeated UCR on the road, 1-0. Elias kept the backline line intact all night as an early goal from Alex Heilmann in the 14th minute put all the pressure on the defense to hold on to the 1-0 lead and they did. The Titan goalkeeper made a crucial save late in the game to secure the huge road victory for Fullerton. With three regular season matches left, Elias will need to record a clean sheet in each one to tie the program record but with the Titans back in the Big West Tournament it looks likely that the senior will get at least one more match after the end of the regular season.
CORNER KICKING THE COMPETITION
As we get toward the end of the season there is one statistical category that the Titans have dominated all year, corners. Fullerton extend its lead atop the Big West with a steady diet of corners this past week to have a total of 105 corners which is 21 more than UC Irvine who is second in the conference with 84 corners. On average, the Titans draw around 6.18 corners a contest which has been crucial to maintaining possession in the attacking half and keeping pressure on opposing teams in the box. Robert Coronado and Nicolo D'Amato have been the primary corner takers for Fullerton and have been successful on getting the ball in dangerous positions for Titan forwards such as Alex Heilmann, Rei Dorwart and Jacob Perez.
KUNTZ REACHES 350 MARK
Fullerton men's soccer coach George Kuntz continues to add to his stellar coaching legacy this season as he reached the 350 win mark with a 1-0 road win over UC Riverside last Saturday. Kuntz also collected his 75th Big West victory at the same time. Currently, Kuntz has a steady lead when it comes to all-time career victories as the Titan head coach leads UC Santa Barbara's Tim Vom Steeg by 110 wins. Coach Kuntz has also been outstanding when tournament times come around as he has a 13-1 career record in the Big West Tournament and is currently undefeated in the conference tournament (5-0) since taking the helm at Fullerton back in 2014.
FRIDAYS AT FULLERTON
With the start of the 2016-17 athletic season, CSUF introduces Fridays at Fullerton which is a membership club designed to enhance the Titan game day experience. The membership will feature a beer/wine hospitality area at every Friday home competition for all sports. Those interested in joining the club can visit www.fullertontitans.com/donate/Fridays_at_Fullerton for more information.
FULLERTONTITANS.COM
Make sure to visit the official site of Cal State Fullerton Athletics (FullertonTitans.com) for the latest news, scores, stats and photos from every CSUF event.
TICKETS
The Cal State Fullerton Athletics Ticket Office is located in the Titan House off of Gymnasium Drive on the northeast side of Titan Gym. Ticket purchases can be made in person at the Ticket Office, over the phone, or online. Those interested in the best available tickets should visit FullertonTitans.com at least 24 hours prior to any athletic sporting event.
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL
Make sure to follow @CSUFMensSoccer on Twitter and like the Cal State Fullerton Men's Soccer page on Facebook to keep up with the Titans. Also, make sure to give a follow to @FullertonTitans on Twitter and Snapchat.