No. 3 UC Riverside at No. 4 Cal State Fullerton

Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013 | 1:00 PM

Titan Stadium • Fullerton, Calif.

TV: Fox Sports Prime Ticket

Play-byPlay: Mark Rogondino

Color Analyst: Jon Herz

Live Stats: www.fullertontitans.com

Audio: www.fullertontitans.com

Tickets: www.fullertontitans.com

KICK OFF: On Sunday, Cal State Fullerton will make its fifth appearance in the Big West Conference championship match, when the No. 4 seeded Titans host No. 3 seed UC Riverside at 1:00 p.m. at Titan Stadium. The winner of Sunday's match will receive the Big West Conference's automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.

HOW THE TITANS GOT HERE: Cal State Fullerton earned the right to host the 2013 Big West Tournament after winning the 2012 Big West regular season championship. Fullerton received the No. 4 seed in the 2013 Big West Tournament after completing conference play with 11 points (3-3-2). 

On Thursday night, Cal State Fullerton hosted No. 1 seed and 2013 regular season champion Cal Poly. The Mustangs scored first in the 27th minute courtesy of Sara Lancaster's penalty kick after Fullerton was whistled for a foul in the box. Fullerton answered 10 minutes later as Nikki McCants recorded the equalizer with a volley to the left corner. The teams remained tied at 1-1 through regulation and an additional 20 minutes of overtime. Fullerton advanced 4-3 in a penalty kick shootout as Katie Pulliam made two saves in goal. A year ago, Fullerton advanced to the Big West championship match on penalty kicks, 3-0, after tying host UC Irvine, 1-1.

FULLERTON AT THE BIG WEST TOURNAMENT: Cal State Fullerton holds a 6-4-2 overall record at the Big West Tournament. The Titans have been victorious twice in the championship finals (2005, 2006), and have also advanced by way of a penalty kick shootout (2007), before suffering their first championship loss, 1-0, in overtime to Cal State Northridge a year ago. Claiming three Big West Tournament titles, the Titans advanced to the NCAA Tournament  in 2005, 2006 and 2007 following those championships. Fullerton also advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2001 after winning the Big West regular season title.

IN THE POLLS: Cal State Fullerton and UC Riverside are not currently listed among the nation's top 25 entering the Big West Conference Tournament, however, the Titans rank ninth in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America West Region rankings.

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 women's soccer team has established its own Facebook and Twitter presence. Search for "Cal State Fullerton Women's Soccer" on Facebook or follow them on Twitter at @CSUF_WSoccer.

"CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?": Thanks to a partnership with Arizona-based Stretch Internet, Cal State Fullerton's home matches, as well as selected road contests, can be heard live over the Internet at FullertonTitans.com. Veteran broadcaster Mike Martinez will have the play-by-play. To access the links, click on the headphones icon in the upper right-hand corner of the newly redesigned FullertonTitans.com and enjoy the action.

"CAN YOU SEE ME NOW?": Sunday's Big West Tournament championship match will be televised by Fox Sports Primeticket.

I NEED STATS, STAT!: Live stats will be available for all of Cal State Fullerton's home matches and selected road contests throughout the year. Follow along by accessing the links on the women's soccer schedule page at FullertonTitans.com.

"O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!": Cal State Fullerton junior midfielder Chelsey Patterson has been named team captain for the 2013 season.

RIVERSIDE BRIEFLY: The Highlanders' win last Sunday over Long Beach State, coupled with losses by UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton, allowed the UC Riverside Women's Soccer Team to clinch the number three seed in the Big West Conference Tournament. UCR is making its second appearance in the Big West Conference Tournament championship match (first 2005). Tyler Cunningham leads UCR with four goals, while Elizabeth Silas has started 19 matches in goal.

SERIES NOTES: Cal State Fullerton leads the all-time series with UC Riverside by the count of 7-5-2. The Titans were unbeaten in their last  four contests (3-0-1) against the Highlanders dating back to the 2008 season, before suffering a 1-0 loss at UCR on Oct. 13, earlier this year. Seven of the last eight meetings have been decided by a single goal with one draw thrown into the mix...Fullerton has a 4-2-1 advantage against UCR at Titan Stadium.

UCR AT THE BIG WEST TOURNAMENT: UC Riverside's 2-1 overtime victory over UC Irvine on Thursday marked the program's first win at the Big West Tournament, with an overall record of 1-2-1. The Highlanders advanced to the Big West Championship match in 2005 after advancing on penalty kicks, 4-2, following 110 minutes of scoreless soccer against Long Beach State at Titan Stadium. UCR went on to lose, 4-1, to Cal State Fullerton in the 2005 tournament title match. 

"THE SUSPENSE IS TERRIBLE... I HOPE IT'LL LAST": Don't leave early, there's plenty of soccer left to play. It's almost become routine for the Titans to play an overtime period or two this season as they have done nine times thus far in 2013 -- two shy of their NCAA record-tying 11 overtime matches in 2011. The Titans remain unbeaten in overtime (3-0-6) and are 13-10-20  in extra time during Head Coach Demian Brown's six-plus seasons. 

"WAIT A MINUTE. STRIKE THAT. REVERSE IT.": As Fullerton opened its 2013 season, the offense struggled to find its legs, scoring just five times in its first eight contests (3-3-2 record). The Titans reversed that trend, scoring eight times during their five-match unbeaten streak from Sept. 22-Oct. 6 (3-0-2 record), including multiple goals in three of those matches. Fullerton has scored multiple goals in only four games this season, and in its last eight matches, the Titans have scored five goals.

FLAIR FOR THE DRAMATIC: Cal State Fullerton has made it a habit of scoring late this season, netting nine of its 17 goals -- three of those going for "golden goal" game-winners -- in the 70th minute or later, including a pair against Hawai'i (Oct. 4) and Cal State Northridge (Oct. 6). Morgan Batcheller, who had the game-tying goal against the Matadors in the 72nd minute on Oct. 6 (and had another in the 108th minute at USC earlier in the year), has two of the nine goals, heading up a group that includes Ali White (74' at BYU), Rebecca Wilson (71' vs. Montana), Brianna Chapman (89' vs. LMU), Janali West (74' vs. Gonzaga), Summer Chavez (93' vs. Hawaii), Nikki McCants (88th vs. UC Santa Barbara) and Erica Mazeau (110th minute vs. UC Davis).

HOME COOKING: Fullerton's 1-0 overtime win over UC Davis on Oct. 27 moved the Titans to 7-1-4 within the friendly confines of Titan Stadium, surpassing their 2011 mark of 6-4-2 on their home turf. The record for most home wins was set in 1996 (10-5) and later matched by the 2005 squad (10-1).

HELPING HERSELF TO THE RECORD BOOK: Another match, another assist for Erica Mazeau as she was charged with the assist on Janali West's goal against Long Beach State on Oct. 31. The assist was 14th of the senior's career, placing her eighth on the school's all-time list in the category. Mazeau stands just four back of co-record holders Dolores Browning (1995-98) and Kellie Cox (2001-05) for the top spot.

WELL, THAT WAS QUICK: Summer Chavez's strike just 2:35 into overtime against Hawai'i on Oct. 4 was the sixth-fastest overtime goal by a Titan in school history and the quickest since JeAnne Mazeau scored just 58 seconds into the first extra time period at Cal State Northridge on Oct. 5 of last season.

NUMBER 10... Nikki McCants became the 10th different Titan to score a goal this season with her  volley in the 88th minute against UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 20. Only five players (Erica Mazeau, Christina Burkenroad, Janali West and Morgan Batcheller and McCants) have scored multiple times this season.

THE 200 CLUB: With her 12 saves on the opening weekend of Big West play, senior goalkeeper Lindsey Maricic joined a very select group in Cal State Fullerton women's soccer history, becoming only the third keeper to eclipse the 200-save plateau for a career. Adding five saves on Thursday against the Mustangs, Maricic's 233 career saves rank behind only Laura Janke's 235 stops from 2000-03 and Karen Bardsley's school-record 312 saves from 2002-06 on the all-time list. In addition, Maricic's 92 saves this season rank fifth on the single-season chart and mark a career-best for the Alta Loma, Calif., native.

PLAYING THE PERCENTAGES: If the season ended today, Maricic's .868 save percentage would be a school record, eclipsing the mark of .848 set by Karen Bardsley in 2006. Maricic has allowed just 14 goals in 111 shots on frame this season.

ALL TIED UP: The Oct. 31 draw against Long Beach State marked the ninth career tie with Maricic in net -- far and away the all-time record for a Fullerton keeper, doubling up the previous mark held by Bardsley and Shannon Simpson (2007-10), who each had four decisions that ended in draws during their careers.

MINUTE-WOMAN: With her 110 minutes played in goal on Thursday Maricic solidified her hold on the No. 2 spot with 6,287 career minutes played between the pipes, standing just 108 back of career leader Karen Bardsley (6,395 minutes from 2002-06).

ELSEWHERE...: Lindsey Maricic also ranks among the school's top five in saves per game (5th - 4.00), save percentage (2nd - .802), goals against average (3rd - .982), and wins (t2nd - 24).

#WINNING: Erica Mazeau's assist on Nikki McCants' game-winner against UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 20 was her third game-winning assist of the season (tied for third on the school's single-season list) and the sixth of her career, placing her in a tie for second on Fullerton's all-time list -- three back of Kellie Cox's career mark of nine from 2001-05.

"THIS" CLOSE: Eighteen of Cal State Fullerton's 20 matches this season have been decided by a single goal or fewer, save for a 3-1 loss at No. 6 BYU in the season opener on Aug. 23 and a 2-0 win over Montana on Sept. 1 at home.

AMONG THE NATION'S BEST: How does the Titans' defense stand up nationally, you ask? Among all 323 NCAA programs, the Titans rank No. 13 in the nation in save percentage (.871), while ranking 28th in goals against average (0.689). Individually, senior goalkeeper Lindsey Maricic ranks among the top 100 in four different categories: No. 14 in save percentage (.878), No. 68 in saves per game (5.11), No. 35 in goals against average (0.710) and No. 62 in saves (92).

DE-FENSE (CLAP, CLAP): Fullerton's defense has emerged as one of the best in the league, ranking atop the Big West statistical rankings in fewest goals allowed (15), goals against average (0.750), and saves (101), while standing tied for third in shutouts (7). The 2005 squad also allowed only 15 goals, standing as the program record.

BE AGGRESSIVE, B-E AGGRESSIVE: Cal State Fullerton, whistled for a Big West leading 252 fouls this season, has been the aggressor on the pitch thus far, racking up 16 matches with 10 or more fouls and leading the opposition in that category in 13 of its 20 contests this season -- including a season-high 27 fouls on Sept. 15 against Utah State. 

TOP DRAWER RANKING: Erica Mazeau, Lindsey Maricic and Morgan Batcheller were named to Top Drawer Soccer's Top 20 List for the Big West Conference.