TEAMING WITH PRIDE

UC Irvine men's soccer took another step into the national limelight and even set a new standard as far as the program is concerned.

The program followed up one of its most successful seasons ever in 2013 with another equally successful campaign. UCI played 25 matches in 2014, two more than any other program has ever played. Cameron Iwasa, Michael Breslin, and Mats Bjurman were the only three 'Eaters to start every match.

UCI tied a program record with 16 victories matching the 2011 squad that went 16-6-1. In the process, the Anteaters earned its fifth NCAA Tournament berth, all coming in the last seven seasons.

Defeats of UNLV in the first round and No. 6 national seed, Stanford, pushed UCI into the Sweet Sixteen for a third time while winning multiple matches in the same tournament for the first time.

The Anteaters ended a few unbeaten runs in its loss to Providence. It was its first loss of the season against a ranked opponent in six tries (4-1-1) as well as its first non-conference loss (10-1-1), first road non-conference loss (7-1-1), and first loss outside the state of California (3-1-1).

The 'Eaters began the season unbeaten in its first 10 matches going 8-0-2, second-longest in program history. They strung together win streaks of five matches to start the season and four following a draw at No. 6 Georgetown.

'EATER FEATS

Most of the accomplishments came from, but were not limited to, one player in 2014. Cameron Iwasa became one of the most prolific Anteaters for the program playing in his 85th career match tying Amani Walker for the program record. His 73 starts tie him for fifth all-time with Brian Teter and Andrew Fontein.

He crept into some offensive categories as well most notable the career goals scored rankings. His late rush of four goals in his final six matches made him the 11th Anteater to reach 20 career goals with 22, ninth-most in program history.

It also gave him 58 career points tying him for the eighth-most in a career with help from 14 assists, three out of the career top-ten.

Iwasa managed just one game-winning goal in 2014, but it was the eighth in his career, fourth-most for an Anteater.

He tied for the team lead in assists this season alongside Gor Kirakosyan with six. Iwasa's six goals tied him with Dennis Martinez one behind a team-leading seven goals from Eduardo Calzada.

Calzada and Martinez teamed up to put away three game-winners to lead the squad. Iwasa led the team in shots totaling  235 in his career which ranks third all-time in the Big West Conference.

Iwasa wasn't the only player with a point streak as he rattled off four straight matches down the stretch. Gor Kirakosyan had a five-match point streak that included goals in four straight. Calzada also had a three-match goal streak.

Another conference standout was redshirt junior keeper Michael Breslin. He played all 2,344:50 to set a Big West single-season record. In program history, he earned all 16 wins this season tying Andrew Fontein's mark set in 2011. He tied a personal record with 10 shutouts this season, one before Fontein's 2010 season. Breslin also posted 93 saves on the season, the most for an Anteater keeper since 1992 and the fifth-most in one season.

All-time, Breslin continues to creep towards the top marks. He still needs seven starts, 14 wins, and six shutouts to unseat Fontein's program records. He stands with the third-lowest goals-against-average at 1.03 which includes a 0.39 postseason GAA. His 231 career saves are fifth in UCI history and is within striking distance to become the third Anteater keeper to stop 300 or more career shots.

Up until the Friars' goal, Breslin had built up his longest shutout streak of the season at 414 minutes and saved 19 consecutive shots. He also ended this season much like 2013 with a home shutout streak. His current one stands at 346 minutes

NUMBER FIRE

18 - UC Irvine scored nearly half (18) of its 37 goals in the final 30 minutes of regulation with the latest goal coming 18 seconds before the end of regulation from Dennis Martinez to tie the match and send it to overtime at LMU. In addition, it put away 33 via kicks while four were headed in. Eight came in 1v1 situations where five were put away off a corner kick.

7 - Opponents were unable to undo the 'Eaters once the match went to overtime in 2014. Seven matches went more than 90 minutes with UCI winning four and drawing three. Overtime game-winners came in the 92nd, 97th, 103rd, and 105th minutes for the 'Eaters

1,231 - UC Irvine welcomed the eighth-largest crowd to Anteater Stadium, sixth largest for a men's match when it hosted Cal State Fullerton in front of 1,231 fans for the Big West Tournament Final. It is the 21st match in stadium history to exceed 1,000 fans

400-700 - This seemed like the magic number for UCI this season. In front of crowds totaling 400-700 fans, the 'Eaters were 5-5-1, while crowds of less than 400 fans and more than 700 fans saw UC Irvine go 11-1-2 with its lone loss coming in front of 4,731 fans in Santa Barbara. The average crowd this season at home was actually 642

16 - Senior Cameron Iwasa became the first Anteater in program history to be named a semifinalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy crowning the nation's best college soccer player. Iwasa is one of 16 players named to the list with three finalists and a fan's choice fourth player being voted into the making the final cut on December 12. The announcement of the winner will come January 9, 2015

14 - The Anteaters were among the ranked schools in all 14 weeks before the final rankings. UC Irvine started as No. 16 in the NSCAA and was as high as No. 3 on two different occasions, even No. 2 according to Top Drawer Soccer. Its Sweet Sixteen loss to Providence was its first of the year against a ranked squad in six tries