'Eaters Trek to San Francisco, Pacific

Thursday, September 20

San Francisco, CA

7:00 PM

UC Irvine

San Francisco

'Eaters Trek to San Francisco, Pacific

September 17, 2018 | Men's Soccer

Game Notes

By: Alex Croteau

UC Irvine's winning ways will be tested in Northern California against a battle-tested San Francisco squad in a revenge match followed by a volatile 2017 NCAA Tournament participant in Pacific

Game Notes

UC Irvine Anteaters at San Francisco Dons
Thursday, Sep. 20, 2018 - 7:00 PM
Negoesco Stadium - San Francisco, Calif.
Live Stats | Video

UC Irvine Anteaters at Pacific Tigers
Sunday, Sep. 23, 2018 - 2:00 PM
Knoles Field - Stockton, Calif.
Live Stats | Video

Storylines
• UC Irvine begins the year 5-2-1 through its first eight matches for the second straight season
• The 'Eaters outscored its opponents 7-0 over the weekend getting goals from seven different scorers. UCI is tied atop the Big West Conference with a +9 goal differential next to UC Davis and CSUN
• UC Irvine snagged the program's 300th win Friday night with a defeat of Pomona-Pitzer
• Greg Patenaude currently leads the conference in minutes and shutouts, second in GAA
• Jose Ortiz's five goals tie him atop the Big West scoring leaders, Ivan Canales is the conference's leader in game-winning goals with three, and the pair are joined by Alvaro Quezada in the top 10 in Big West points

About San Francisco
• The Dons have been jerked around so far in 2018 starting off with good wins over CSUN and No. 8 UCLA along with a tie to SDSU, but have lost four straight now to the likes of Stanford, SJSU, and ranked Air Force and Denver squads on the road to go 2-4-1 to this point while hopping into the rankings, currently at 22nd but as high as 17th
• USF turned things around last year when it met up with UCI coming in with a 2-7 record and defeating the 'Eaters to rattle off six wins in their final seven to reach the NCAA Tournament at 9-8 and win its opening round match at Cal before falling to fourth-seeded Louisville in the second round. Even so, USF was pick to finish fourth in the eight-team preseason WCC poll
• Preseason All-WCC honorees Sean Bowman and Santiago Digiuseppe each have two goals so far with both of Bowman's going for game-winners, Bowman also leads the team in minutes while defensive back Seamus McLaughlin heads a turbulent defensive formation, and sophomore keeper Ruben Stuiver has made 27 saves in net allowing almost two goals per match

About Pacific
• The Tigers are 4-2-1 upsetting ranked Cal in OT and adding victories over UC Riverside and San Jose State while drawing with Sac State and suffering tough losses to Bakersfield and Marist. UOP heads to Stanford Thursday before hosting UCI
• Pacific is coming off back-to-back 13-4-2 seasons where it triumphed over a Big West side in the NCAA First Round before falling in the second round at Stanford in each year. It's a far cry for the program that restarted operation in 2014 winning four games in its first two seasons which included its second match after its return to the pitch in Anteater Stadium where the 18th-ranked Anteaters posted a 3-0 win in a match that featured future pro, Tristan Blackmon, for the Tiger side
• Junior Daniel Schiller has three goals, one in each match early on in the season, to go with an assist, the defensive quartet of Jackson Goebel, Gabe Welp, Will Crain, and Will Mims have played nearly every minute through the three matches, and freshman keeper James Swomley has reaped the benefits needing to save just four shots

With a win...
• ...UC Irvine will even the series with USF who has won two of the three all-time meetings
• ...over Pacific, UCI would remain unbeaten having taken down UOP 7-0 (1985) and 3-0 (2014) in two meetings at home
• ...or draw in overtime, the 'Eaters could add to its string of overtime matches which its done in all three road contests this season

Up Next
• UC Irvine closes up non-conference play after meetings with USF and UOP with a final road matchup at Saint Mary's, Sat. Sep. 29 with a Gael squad that has won its first seven contests

Keeping the Faith
The Anteaters are pacing the Big West early on in defense allowing five goals in eight matches. The team's 0.59 goals-against-average leads the conference in its 758 minutes played which is also a conference best. UCI has allowed just 26 shots on target even, 1 of 2 Big West squads to allow less than 30 (UCSB - 21). Greg Patenaude has gotten the start in all eight matches earning four shutouts on his own which tops the conference, and the conference's minutes played leader (713:32) ranks just behind UC Davis keeper Wallis Lapsley in GAA at 0.63

Cool Customers
Yes the 'Eaters do have a red card this season, but in terms of yellow cards, the 'Eaters have accrued just two which is the least in the nation averaging 1 every 4 matches. The 'Eaters have committed 11.38 fouls per match which is least in the Big West, and have even earned a penalty kick which it convert and have done so six straight times dating back to 2015

First Touches
• A couple Anteaters made their starting debuts over the weekend. Second-year forward Axel Adler started up top against Pomona-Pitzer, and he added with his first career point on Sunday assisting on Alvaro Quezada's goal. Second-year keeper Carlos Contreras made his collegiate debut in the second half of Friday's win over Pomona-Pitzer sharing in the shutout. He collected the match's only save which registered as the first of his career
• Friday's match was the scene of first career goals for three different Anteaters. Senior Daniel Crisostomo waited until his 60th career match to find the back of the net converting his 72nd-minute penalty kick. Christian Gutierrez started the scoring Friday with a header in the 34th minute for his first career goal, point, and game-winning goal. Fellow third-year Manny Acosta cleaned up with a brilliant strike in the 81st minute for his first career point and goal
• Alvaro Quezada continues to lead the Big West in shots with 23 and 2.88 per match. The team as a whole leads the Big West with 102 shots, and its 12.75 per match is second behind UC Davis (13.43)
• UC Irvine earned 14 corner kicks in Friday's win tying a program record that has been set four times prior with the most recent coming in a Big West Tournament match in 2015 at Cal Poly
• Two Anteaters were honored in the Courtyard Marriott San Diego Central Aztec Soccer Tournament where it finished 1-1. Ivan Canales and Jose Soto were named to the all-tournament team

Top Dog
Senior Ivan Canales continued his impressive run as an Anteater scoring his sixth career game-winner Sunday coming off his game-winner, his third of the season which leads the conference. He added an assist on UCI's second goal to give him 54 career points, one off of cracking UCI's all-time top 10. He is up to 18 career goals, two away from becoming the 12th Anteater with 20 over a career. His 18 assists is already top-ten worthy as he just passed Spencer Thompson and David Szekeres who were tied for 10th on Sunday. He's now alongside the likes of Manny Hernandez, Michael Mucino, Irving Garcia, and Miguel Ibarra in the records tied for sixth. With two more assists and goals, Canales would become the second Anteater ever with 20 of each, only Kevin Smith (22 G, 24 A) has reached that level

Starting a Trend
Junior Jose Ortiz scored in back-to-back matches over the weekend having already posted a three-match scoring streak this year. Ortiz has a goal in all five home matches this season, and is responsible for a goal in five of UCI's last six matches overall. Also starting a streak has been Alvaro Quezada with points in three straight matches and six points over that span.

Opening Statements
UC Irvine now stands at 22-9-4 all-time in season openers, 2-3-1 when opening on the road. UCI fell in its home opener Friday, 2-1 to Utah Valley, to snap its streak of 13 straight unbeaten home openers that dated back to 2004.

Voter Turnout
UC Irvine earned four votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll last week, a dropoff from the 20 votes the week prior and 18 in the previous poll. Poll results are released every Tuesday. The 'Eaters have not landed in the top 25 since 2015, but do hold a 20-25-6 all-time record against ranked opponents

Exhibiting Quality
UC Irvine took to the pitch twice last week for exhibition matches starting at home Thursday defeating Bakersfield, 2-0. Ivan Canales and Axel Adler scored first-half strikes. They finished up Sunday with a trip to UCLA for the first men's soccer match in newly-constructed Wallis Annenberg Stadium. The Bruins, who are receiving votes in the national preseason poll, would take the victory scoring in the 71st minute to defeat UCI, 1-0.

Playing Professionally
• UC Irvine has 11 Anteaters making a mark on various professional circuits
• Two MLS staples continue to be Miguel Ibarra and Brad Evans. Ibarra is in his seventh pro season where he's earned 152 caps between Minnesota United FC and Leon of LigaMX. In his sixth season with MLS-side MNUFC, he has six goals upping the midfielder's career total to 27. Evans has bounced between Sporting KC and its USL side, Swope Park Rangers, seeing action in four matches total. He's played 226 matches and 28 goals in his 11 professional seasons largely with Seattle Sounders FC and Columbus Crew SC winning an MLS title with each
• The pair also account for all of the national team appearances for UCI alums. Evans took part in 27 World Cup qualifiers, Gold Cup, Confederations Cup, and friendly matches scoring an infamous goal in stoppage time of an WCQ to defeat Jamaica. Ibarra has three caps under his belt, all in U.S. friendlies.
• Six Anteaters resides with USL clubs, most prominently Cam Iwasa as one of the league's leading scorers on Sac Republic FC scoring 27 times over four seasons. Marco Franco has joined with Penn FC while Thomas Janjigian is on the backline for Reno 1868. Mats Bjurman and Giovanni Godoy have teamed up on local side Orange County SC scoring seven goals between them this season. Tarek Morad also joined up with USL side Tampa Bay Rowdies recently after a few years with Louisville City FC
• Others still making waves Enrique Cardenas, playing with Golden State Force FC when he's not coaching at College of the Desert, Lester Hayes III and Amani Walker, each playing with at times with NPSL side Albion SC Pros SD, and Irving Garcia is still extending his career going on sixth overall as a professional and second year now with Guatemalan side, Suchitepequez.

2017-18 Highlights
• UCI returned to a .500 campaign in 2017 after consecutive five-win years
• The Anteaters led the conference in scoring in the regular season with 35 goals led by conference-leader Giovanni Godoy's 13. They also put up a Big West-best 41 assists, its most since the 2010 campaign, with Daniel Crisostomo and Mario Ortiz topping the conference with nine each
• UCI took down one of its two ranked opponents in 2017 defeating No. 8 Denver, 1-0, on a neutral site. It also took No. 9 Louisville to the wire on the road as the 'Eaters stand 20-25-6 all-time against ranked foes

Trending Up
UC Irvine's 8-8-3 campaign and fourth place finish in the Big West South in 2017 doesn't jump off the page, but its a move in the right direction after back-to-back five-win seasons in 2015 and 2016. The goals rose with the results with the team scoring 35 goals, up from 20 in 2016 and 23 in 2015. The Anteaters also dropped 41 assists on those goals last season, its most since 2010's total of 42 assists.

Back for More
Here for his second season as the head coach of the Anteaters is Yossi Raz. He made great strides within his first two years as the head of Cal Poly Pomona taking a program that won three matches prior to his arrival, pushed them to a 7-7-3 mark in his first go, and jumped to a 17-1-2 record in his second season leading to a national title appearance by his third year.

What's Missing?
The right foot of Giovanni Godoy is the largest omission from the 2018 Anteaters after the reigning Big West Offensive Player of the Year graduated and is now playing alongside 'Eater alum Mats Bjurman on Orange County SC. His conference-leading 13 goals accounted for 37% of UC Irvine's production including half of the squad's eight game-winning goals.

Senior Step-Up
The Anteater core in 2018 will be strongly represented by senior leadership of Ivan Canales, Daniel Crisostomo, and Luis Leon. Canales returns following a third All-Big West selection, the midfielder centerpiece has a new number and an edge and the attacking leader going forward. Crisostomo is one of the nation's leading returners in assists after dishing out nine as a junior. Over the summer, he continued to add to his resume in the midfield playing for Orange County FC and was named to the National XI for the season of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL). Leon has rode a consistent offensive ledger accounting for multiple goals and at least six points in each of his first three years as an Anteater.

Second-Year Sensations
The Anteaters got positive dividends from its new crop of transfers a year ago with a steady hand in the midfield from Victor Falck, and also on the backline, Jose Soto stood above the rest earning an All-Big West selection. Impactful freshmen Alvaro Quezada and Lawrence Yamaguchi fit right in to coach Raz's mentality, and will be prime figures to keep the scoring at a high level for the 'Eaters

Chon Zone
Another hefty absence will be the skillful frame of Mario Ortiz who contribute nine assists a year ago, but another Ortiz, Jose, is primed to join the scoring barrage. He's contributed five goals to this point in his career including three as a sophomore

Keeper's Corner
The healthiest competition on the squad could come between the posts with senior Greg Patenaude and junior Alex Waldron each coming in with an experienced hand. Patenaude finished the 2017 season as the No. 1 guy scoring a pair of wins in the final three matches. Waldron played half of the matches in his first year, and them rolled through a majority of his sophomore campaign atop the depth chart putting together nine wins and five shutouts across the seasons. The two will likely each see time through the exhibition matches.

What does the Future Hold?
The recently-revealed nine newcomers joining the squad in 2018 for coach Raz features some very veteran talent. Three transfers enter the fray with two in line to be big parts of the 2018 plans. Senior back Darren Hamilton has commanded backlines on the junior college and Division I levels, and will provide a huge boost to pair with Soto. Jalani Ambrose has a couple of years experience from Santa Clara skating down the wings and being thrust into a defensive role. In addition to the vets, the 'Eaters bring on six freshmen that could be called upon with an abbreviated roster of 25 players at coach Raz's disposal. The likes of Axel Adler and Ben Reveno who will make their first steps onto an Anteater pitch, and the returns of redshirts Manny Acosta and Christian "GunGun" Gutierrez will also be felt in the formation

Opposing Views
UC Irvine's collective schedule might not be so daunting from first glance, but a lot of postseason experience lays in waiting for the Anteaters with squads like Pacific and San Francisco coming off tourney appearances last year. Others have been successful elsewhere such as UCF projected to win the American Athletic Conference in the preseason, James Madison the reigning Colonial Athletic Association regular season champs, and Brown finish third a year ago in a highly-competitive Ivy League. In addition, five Anteater opponents have earned votes in the United Soccer Coaches preseason rankings which includes Sunday's opponent, UCLA.