THIS WEEK...
Cal State Fullerton at Sacramento State
Friday, Oct. 5, 2012 | 4:00 p.m.
Hornet Field
Sacramento, Calif.
Game Coverage: Live Stats
Cal State Fullerton at UC Davis
Sunday, Oct. 7, 2012 | 3:00 p.m.
Aggie Soccer Field
Davis, Calif.
Game Coverage: Live Stats
KICK OFF: Fresh off a battle with the nation's No. 3-ranked side, the Cal State Fullerton men's soccer team (4-7-1 overall, 0-1-1 in the Big West Conference) hits the road for the first time in conference play this weekend, completing its tour against the Big West's North Division with contests at newcomer Sacramento State and UC Davis in Northern California. The Titans and unbeaten Hornets meet on Friday afternoon (Oct. 5) at 4 p.m. before Fullerton traverses the Causeway to take on the Aggies on Sunday (Oct. 7) at 3 p.m.
IN THE POLLS: Neither Cal State Fullerton nor its opponents are ranked in the top 25 this week.
BE A FOLLOWER: Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (CSUF.Athletics) and Twitter (@FullertonTitans).
"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. 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?": For the fifth consecutive year, institutions will air select matches on BigWest.TV, including all Cal State Fullerton and UC Santa Barbara contests. For the 2012 season, all BigWest.TV events will air free of charge. Head to http://www.bigwest.org/thisweek for weekly event schedules. BigWest.TV brings together live and on-demand video from each of the Big West's ten member institutions. Now in its eighth year, BigWest.TV covers Big West sports, press conferences, interviews and features, including every home and conference contest in women's volleyball as well as men's and women's basketball. Also covered are select contests in women's soccer, baseball, softball and Big West Conference Championships.
I NEED STATS, STAT!: Barring technical difficulties, live stats will be available for both of this week's matches. Visit the men's soccer schedule page on FullertonTitans.com to access the links.
"O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!": Senior defender Bobby Reiss was named team captain for the 2012 season.
SACRAMENTO STATE BRIEFLY: The Hornets enter the weekend with a 5-4-1 overall record and a perfect 2-0 mark in their first season as an affiliate member of the Big West Conference... Sacramento State is the only unbeaten, untied team in the league after one weekend of play... the Hornets are 3-1-1 at home this season... reigning Big West Offensive Player of the Week Isaac Ikyurav leads the team with nine points overall on three goals and three assists while standing second on the team with 18 shots... Gabe Silveira holds the team lead with four goals while Chris Sandoval has also scored three times... goalkeeper Bryan Oliver, the league's Defensive Player of the Week, has started nine of the 10 matches in net, posting a 1.27 goals against average and 50 saves to go with three shutouts.
HEAD-TO-HEAD VERSUS THE HORNETS: Cal State Fullerton is perfect in four matches against Sacramento State, having not surrendered a goal in the history of the series to the Hornets and outscoring them, 12-0... the two programs have not met in men's soccer since a neutral site clash in 1999 -- a 3-0 Titans' victory... with the exception of that season, all three of the previous meetings have been in Fullerton.
UC DAVIS BRIEFLY: The Aggies enter the weekend with a 2-4-4 overall record and an 0-1 mark in Big West Conference play after falling at Cal State Northridge last week... UC Davis has lost its last three straight matches -- all via the shutout -- but has only been outscored, 5-0, in those contests... the Aggies' last win came over then-No. 23 Tulsa, 2-1, on Sept. 14... Davis opened the year with a win over UNLV (1-0) and then four consecutive ties... freshman midfielder Ryan Gross leads the team with six points overall on two goals and a pair of assists while junior forward Pat Reese has also found the back of the net twice... junior Omar Zeenni has played in all but one match between the pipes for the Aggies this season, posting a 1.11 goals against average and 35 saves to go with three shutouts.
HEAD-TO-HEAD VERSUS THE AGGIES: Cal State Fullerton leads the all-time series with UC Davis, 6-4-3, after the two programs battled to a 1-1 draw last season in Davis... the Titans are 3-2-2 on the Aggies home field... Fullerton is unbeaten in its last four trips to UC Davis, going 2-0-2 dating back to 2007.
HANNON COMES UP HUGE: Junior goalkeeper Robbie Hannon not only came in to make only his second career start between the pipes for the Titans on Sunday, he had the added pressure of having to face the nation's No. 3-ranked team in UC Santa Barbara. Hannon was up to the task, however, as he made a career-high five saves to help shut out the high-powered Gauchos -- the first time in 22 matches that UCSB had been held off the scoreboard dating back to a 2-0 loss to UC Irvine on Oct. 1, 2011. Hannon, who has made four appearances for Fullerton after helping Lynn University to an NCAA Division II runner-up finish last season, has yet to allow a goal in 264 minutes, making 12 saves to go with a pair of shutouts.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN, "NO GOALS?": Cal State Fullerton's loss to Cal Poly on Sept. 28 not only ended the Titans' season-best three match winning streak, it also marked the first time that Fullerton had been held scoreless since a 1-0 loss at Loyola Marymount on Sept. 7.
MORE ON THE GOOSE EGG: Cal State Fullerton's scoreless draw with No. 3 UC Santa Barbara was its first tie of the season and the first 0-0 match for the Titans since Fullerton and CSU Bakersfield held one another scoreless just over a year ago to the day on Sept. 28, 2011, at Titan Stadium.
FAN APPRECIATION: Cal State Fullerton's doubleheaders with the women's team last weekend drew the Titan faithful to Titan Stadium in droves as Friday night's clash with Cal Poly brought in 1,182 fans while the battle against No. 3 UC Santa Barbara attracted 1,002 fans to the stands. The two crowds were the highest for a men's soccer home match in over two years dating back to a 3-2 loss to Southern California rival UCLA on Sept. 26, 2010 -- a match that drew 1,208 fans.
JESSE'S GOAL: After scoring goals in five consecutive matches, Cal State Fullerton senior Jesse Escalante was held off the scoresheet for the first time against Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara last weekend, but still ranks among the league's most dangerous scorers. Escalante enters the week tied for second in the Big West Conference in goals (6), tied for fourth in goals per match (0.50), tied for second in points (13), fourth in points per match (1.08), and eighth in shots (23).
ALL HE DOES IS WIN (GAMES): Everyone has heard the old adage, "Defense Wins Championships." Well, this defender wins games for the Titans. Aside from being charged with marking one of the opposition's top offensive threats, sophomore Anthony Rosales also provides his own brand of offense, tallying his second game-winner in three matches for Fullerton on Sept. 20 against Air Force. His goal with eight seconds remaining before the end of the first half proved enough to ground the Falcons just days after also scoring the game winner on Sept. 16 in a, 3-1, win over Syracuse, which also served as his first career score.
THAT'S IAN, WITH AN "A": Sophomore Ian Ramos has also been a big part of Fullerton's recent success, scoring all five of his points this season in the Titans' last six matches. His two assists on Sept. 23 against San Diego gave him three for the year (and also accounted for the first assists of her career) and he stands tied for fourth with numerous players among the Big West leaders this week.
"STOP" ME IF YOU'VE HEARD THIS ONE: Cal State Fullerton goalkeepers have combined to stop a league-high 56 shots this season, including 44 of those by redshirt freshman Adam Zepeda, who also ranks third in the league overall and third with 4.40 saves per game. Zepeda finished with a career high-tying nine stops on Sept. 23 against San Diego to help the Titans to a 2-1 overtime win after setting the bar with nine saves at Bakersfield on Sept. 10.
ROAD WOE-IORS: Cal State Fullerton's win over Syracuse on Sept. 16 was the Titans' first win away from the friendly confines of Titan Stadium dating back to their, 3-0, win over American University on Sept. 16, 2011. The win, however, has not snapped a rather lengthy skid in "true" road matches as Fullerton, which suffered a one-goal loss at CSU Bakersfield on Sept. 10, is winless in its last eight true road contests (0-6-2).