Cal State Fullerton at Grand Canyon
Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014 | 5:00 PM
GCU Soccer Complex • Phoenix, Ariz.
TV: None
Live Video: www.fullertontitans.com
Live Stats: www.fullertontitans.com
THIS WEEK
The Cal State Fullerton men's soccer team goes on the road this week to play the Grand Canyon University Antelopes at GCU Soccer Complex, Sunday at 5 p.m.
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 12 goals this season coming from six different players as Ian Ramos added his name to the list with his first goal of the season last Friday against Santa Clara.
• Last Sunday's 3-1 victory over Nebraska-Omaha marked Fullerton's third straight win, the Titans last winning streak of three games came October 6-13, 2013.
• Men's soccer has swept the first two weeks of the Buffalo Wild Wings Student Athlete of the Week award. Marc Fenelus was the week one recipient followed by Garrett Losee in week two.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
Cal State Fullerton fans can follow the action as the Titans take on the Antelopes Sunday at 5 p.m. by logging on to FullertonTitans.com
Live Stats: fullertontitans.com
Live Video: fullertontitans.com
OPPONENT & HISTORY
Grand Canyon | 5:00 PM
Sunday, Sept. 28 | GCU Soccer Complex
Fresh off of claiming a share of the championship in the Copa de Causeway tournament this past weekend, the GCU Anetlopes will return home to take on streaking Cal State Fullerton. A 1-0 win over Sacramento State and a 1-1 draw against UC Davis was enough to share the title with Air Force, who is recieving votes in this week's National Soccer Coaches Assosiation of America poll. A total of four GCU players made the Copa de Causeway all-tournament team: forward Niki Jackson, midfielder Kyle Summerhill, defender Ricardo Tavarez, and goalkeeper Kendyl Day. Jackson also shares the team lead in goals (2) with fellow forward Jose Rodriques Nieblas and midfielder Alberto Sanchez Garcia.
The Antelopes have started games fast this season with five of their six total goals being scored in the oppening half. They will look to strike early and are not afraid of a little extra-time with four of their six total games this year going over the full 90 minutes. GCU will look to push its record over .500 in its upcoming games against Loyola Marymount Thursday and Cal State Fullerton Sunday.
Head-to-Head: The Titans hold the edge in this all-time series, 1-0, with Fullerton getting the victory in the only other meeting of these two schools.
Last Time Out: Marc Fenelus netted his first career goal, a game-winner, after putting on a series of nice moves in the penalty box as Cal State Fullerton won a closely contested game 3-2, Sept. 28, 2013 at Titan Stadium.
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.
RIDING THE HOT HAND
After splitting time between the pipes to start the year, sophomore goalkeeper Davis Rodriguez Elias has started the last three games for the Titans, each resulting in a win. The streak started with a come-from-behind victory against previously 14th-ranked UMBC, 4-3, and has continued during last weekend's homestand, shutting out Santa Clara 1-0 and earning a win against Nebraska-Omaha 3-1.
GET THE ICE PACKS READY
Fullerton still holds the league lead in total fouls through four weeks of play. In eight games played this season, the Titans have racked up 120 fouls. Number two in the league is the Titans' first conference opponent, UC Davis, with 103 fouls through seven games. The two teams will face eachother at 1 p.m. Thursday Oct. 2 at Aggie Soccer Field.
WEEK 2 BUFFALO WILD WINGS STUDENT ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: GARRETT LOSEE
Senior Garrett Losee gave the CSF men's soccer team its second consecutive Buffalo Wild Wings of Brea Student Athlete of the Week award with his performances over two games last weekend.
Losee scored two goals for the Titans during last weekend's homestand against Santa Clara and Nebraska-Omaha, both goals became game-winners. He now leads the team in goals (3) after the weekend outburst.
Losee's first goal of the weekend was the only tally of the game against Santa Clara for either team, CSF winning 1-0. In the 67th minute Ian Ramos found Losee open at the top of the box, he was able to control the pass before propelling a half volley over the head of Bronco goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh.
The second game-winner was a product of smooth passing and deft ball handling by fellow senior, Amara Soumah. In the 72nd minute, forward Soumah looked to be heading into the box with a chance on goal, but quickly turned, made a move toward the goal line, and sent a the ball across the net to a wide open Losee. He did not miss the chance and tapped it into the open net for the game-winning goal.
PREVIOUS BUFFALO WILD WINGS STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:
MEN'S SOCCER
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.
FINISHING STRONG
Over the weekend, CSF stormed back to a .500 record with two big wins at Titan Stadium. Fullerton's strong offensive play in the second half of games this year is contributing to the positive results, of the Titans 12 total goals this season, eight have come in the second half of play.
BIG WEST PLAY IN SIGHT
This will be the last test for Cal State Fullerton (3-3-2) before traveling to UC Davis (2-0-5), Thursday, Oct 2, to open Big West Conference play, 1 p.m., at Aggie Soccer Field.
WIN NO. 50
Fullerton's 4-3 overtime win against UMBC on Sept. 14 was the 50th time the Titans have recorded a victory in OT dating back to 1975. The season-high of overtime wins is five set in the 2000 season.
STATS
• Cal State Fullerton leads the Big West Conference averaging 15.00 fouls per game, and the Titans rank third in the league with 15 yellow cards issued.
• Cal State Fullerton leads the league in corner kicks (49).
WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK
Cal State Fullerton has been whistled for three fouls resulting in penalty kicks for opponents this season. Junior goalkeeper Jeff Salt has stopped 2-of-3 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 stuff in the 24th minute as the game was tied 1-1. However, in the 72nd minute, Colin Okirie was issued a red card for a foul in the box, and USF's Miguel Aguilar was able to strike the game winner past Salt.
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.
During his junior year, Ramos appeared in 18 matches, making 15 starts and finished the season as the Titans' leading scorer with four goals and three assists.
As just a sophomore in 2012, Ramos developed into one of the Titans' premier offensive threats, netting six goals (second on the team) and dishing out a team-leading six assists. His 18 total points were tied for the most on the team and tied for the fifth most in the Big West.
UC Santa Barbara was picked to finish first in the North Division with eight first place votes, while CSUN was picked to finish first in the South Division with six first-place votes.
Cal State Fullerton was selected to finish last in the South Division.
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.
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 -- 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.