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The Anteaters have gone through a grueling stretch that's included two ranked opponents, three road matches, three preseason conference favorites, and a Pac-12 matchup at home decided by an own goal. UCI looks to turn things around with a pair of home contests against the Summit League's Omaha and the WAC's Dixie State.
Storylines
· Anteater keeper
Gordon Botterill made his Anteater debut with the program's 17th match with 10 saves all-time against No. 5 Georgetown. Among his saves was a penalty kick in the 63rd minute of MAC Hermann Preseason Watch List candidate Dante Polvara of Georgetown. He's averaged 6.5 saves a match through four games.
· In the first four matches, UC Irvine had nine players make their collegiate debuts including freshman starter
Mathias Winum, off the bench with
Francesco Montanile,
Victor Sandsmark-Evensen, and
Josh Kenworthy, Anteater redshirts
Oscar Delgado,
Mario Anaya, and
Rafael Espinoza, and Barragan-Manzo as a JC transfer. Four-year transfers making Anteater debuts include Botterill, fellow starter
Ryan Khedoo, and off the bench
Ashish Chattha. Another collegiate debut came Friday night vs. UCLA with
Jake Means playing late in each half.
· UC Irvine's lone goal has come from newcomer
Juan Barragan-Manzo 20 minutes into his collegiate debut in the 82nd minute off a curling free kick against No. 5 Georgetown.
· Returning to the roster are 13 Anteaters, 10 that have played minutes for UCI. Scoring leaders return including
Michael Orozco with three goals and eight points.
Lawrence Yamaguchi and
Oscar Cervantes each bring six career points scoring twice and adding two assists. Cervantes has scored game-winners with each of his two goals. The 'Eaters enter 2021 with three keepers, but none that have any experience with the program. Joining the 13 returners are 14 newcomers; seven joined the squad in 2020 for the season that never happened, and seven more joined the fold for 2021 with three four-year transfers from Fairfield, Kansas City, and San Francisco. UCI lost seven from the 2020 roster including four signing pro contracts.
· Among the new Anteaters is some international flavor including a pair of freshmen from Norway in
Victor Sandsmark-Evensen and
Mathias Winum, four-year transfers in
Gordon Botterill, originally from Switzerland, and
Ryan Khedoo, originally from Canada while also recently playing with the Guyana National Team. Another freshman,
Francesco Montanile crossed stateliness from Arizona, and
Luke Pruter grew up in Ireland. 'Eaters also have international ties to Mexico, India, Hong Kong, Japan, and Germany.
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6 -Â The 2021 schedule includes
6 programs that have reached the NCAA Tournament in the last two years
858 -Â UCI opened up Anteater Stadium to
858 fans last Friday vs. UCLA, the fourth-largest crowd under coach Raz
4th -Â UCI will play their
4th preseason conference favorite when they play Omaha in the season's first five matches
0 -Â Head Coach
Yossi Raz enters his fourth season with UCI and produced
0 losing seasons in the previous three
#1 -Â Coach Raz's 2019 recruiting class was ranked #1 in the nation with two now playing pro and six on the 2021 roster
2 -Â 2 'Eaters (
Alvaro Quezada, Daniel Crisostomo) have made MLS debuts for LAFC over the past month
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This Week's Matches
· The Anteaters host programs also looking to turn things around with 0-3 Omaha and 1-3 Dixie State.
· The week begins Thursday as UCI takes on Omaha at 7:30 p.m. following the women's 3:00 p.m. match. UCI was Omaha's second-ever match in 2011 and first-ever home match winning 4-0. They met again in 2015 in Omaha with the Mavericks taking the 1-0 victory. Omaha was picked to win the Summit League in 2021, the fourth preseason favorite on the UCI slate already. Like UCI, the Mavericks are searching for their first win with losses at Bradley and Drake and home vs. Tulsa. Also like the 'Eaters, they've managed just one goal. Part of the Omaha attack is preseason MAC Hermann watch-lister and Japanese forward Hugo Kametani coming off an All-American season. Omaha posted their first NCAA Tournament win last year upsetting UNC Greensboro as part of a 7-3-1 season.
· Completing the week is a Sunday afternoon contest hosting Dixie State. The Trailblazers started their program in 2008 out on St. George, Utah, and had their first Division I season in 2020 going 3-6-0. They've already taken on UC San Diego defeating them, 1-0, and posted losses to Cal Baptist and at Cal and Saint Mary's. They return most upperclassmen, and junior forward Daniel Brubaker has paced the offense so far in shots and the team's lone goal. Jakob Moore and Levi Lord have shared goalkeeping duties.
2021 To This Point
· The 'Eaters began the season on the road for a fourth straight season heading to the East Coast at Georgetown and Loyola Maryland. The opener was rescheduled from Thursday evening to Friday morning from weather, and ended in a loss to the No. 5 Hoyas, 2-1. UCI completed the trip with a first-ever matchup with Loyola Maryland Sunday falling, 2-0.
· Last week, the 'Eaters fought to a pair of one-goal defeats starting with UCLA visiting Anteater Stadium and dropping the Anteaters on an own goal. The week ended with a visit to 15th-ranked LMU that saw an evenly-played match until the Lions found a 94th-minute, overtime goal to drop UCI, 1-0.
· The Big West revealed its Preseason Coaches Poll and All-Big West Preseason squad last week. The 'Eaters are projected to finish third behind UCSB and UC Davis who are tied for first. The 'Eaters received one first-place vote and were one of six programs of the 10 in The Big West that earned a vote. The 11-player All-Big West Preseason squad featured a pair of Anteaters for the third straight season. Sophomores
Eddy Berumen and
Oscar Cervantes represented after each finished 2019 as members of the Big West All-Freshman Team.
· Head Coach
Yossi Raz returns for his fifth year with the program and fourth Division I soccer season. Raz is 26-21-12 in his three seasons at the helm without any losing seasons including a Big West title and trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2018.
Student-Athlete Notes
· With no soccer in 2020-21, men's soccer still pushed through graduating five Anteaters, and 16 'Eaters made Dean's List between Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters.
Eddy Berumen and
Kelvin Neumetzler were Anteaters that appeared on all three quarters of Dean's List in 2020-21. Three return of the seven that were Big West All-Academic in 2019 including Berumen,
Beto Alvarenga, and
Lawrence Yamaguchi.
· Of the 22 'Eaters that have declared a major, 12 different majors are represented with the most common as Business Economics and Sociology / Social Ecology with six members each.
· The pair of grad transfers to the program will each be working towards their grad school degrees during the season.
Gordon Botterill begins the highly-acclaimed Master's in Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Ryan Khedoo is pursuing DASA, or the Master's in Demographic and Social Analysis
· A pair of Anteaters are currently double majors in
Lawrence Yamaguchi for International Studies and Sociology while
Kelvin Neumetzler is in Psychology and Business Economics.
· Among the other fields Anteaters are studying toward are three Criminology, Law, & Society majors, two International Studies, two Business Administration, and solos in Education, Public Health Science, and Computer Game Science.
Stats To Watch
· Two veterans lead the way in matches played with fifth-year forward
Lawrence Yamaguchi at 54 matches starting 22 while scoring leader
Michael Orozco has started 42 times of the 43 matches he's appeared in.
· Other Anteaters with multiple years of experience include
Beto Alvarenga - five starts in 34 caps,
Axel Adler -
30 caps with four starts, and six starts in 26 career appearances for
Christian Bond-Flasza.
· Third-year sophomores played big roles in 2019 with
Ricardo Ibarra,
Oscar Cervantes, and
Eddy Berumen all playing over 17 matches. Berumen started 13 times with a pair of assists, Ibarra made five starts, but collected five points including a goal, and Cervantes had a pair of game-winning goals and two assists while starting 10 times and earning Big West All-Freshman honors along with Berumen.
· The 'Eaters lose quite a bit including 20 of their 27 goals scored from 2019. Cervantes and Orozco each scored two of the seven returning goals. Orozco and Boateng also return to the back line that loses two center backs,
· In goal, the 'Eaters equip three keepers, all newcomers to the program with a pair of freshmen in
Cody Aung and
Luke Pruter, and
Gordon Botterill was a four-year starter and four-year all-league at Fairfield posting 24 clean sheets in 60 career matches who joins as a graduate student.
· Entering the 2019 season, coach Raz's recruiting class was ranked No. 1 in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer. From that class, two players are currently on pro sides -
Roberto Molina at Las Vegas Lights FC and Jorge Hernandez with L.A. Galaxy II - and those remaining in
Eddy Berumen,
Kwabena Boateng,
Mario Anaya,
Rafael Espinoza,
Ricardo Ibarra, and
Oscar Cervantes.
Fans In The Stands
· UC Irvine soccer and Anteater Stadium welcomes back 100% capacity attendance for the 2021 season. In accordance with updated public health guidance regarding COVID-19, UC Irvine Athletics events will be at full-seating capacity for the upcoming 2021-22 season. The first match vs. UCLA brought in 858 fans, the fourth-largest crowd during coach Raz's tenure.
· All home soccer matches in 2021 will be broadcasted on ESPN+ following the Big West's new deal. Play-by-play broadcaster David Gascon will have all the action for fans.
· Joining coach Raz on the sideline is a reformed coaching staff led by
Cale Rodriguez as top assistant coach.
Yonha Adrabi has elevated from volunteer goalkeeper coach to assistant. Joining as the new volunteer assistant is
Kostas Kyriazis and director of operations
Gemar Lezeau, both coming from the New York Red Bulls coaching ranks.
'Eaters Playing Professionally
· UC Irvine men's soccer alums currently account for 16 'Eaters playing professionally across five countries. The United States holds the largest contingent of Anteaters still playing.
Alvaro Quezada was drafted in early 2021 by LAFC and signed with them. He is currently being loaned to Las Vegas Lights FC alongside fellow 'Eaters Daniel Crisostomo and
Roberto Molina for the USL Championship side. On Wednesday, August 6, LAFC added Crisostomo to the club signing him. Later that evening in LAFC's match vs. Sporting KC, he was on the bench alongside Quezada before Quezada heard his named called for his first MLS minutes entering in the 68th minute and finishing out the match nearly collecting an assist in his debut. Quezada becomes the seventh Anteater all-time to record minutes with and MLS club. Crisostomo later became the eighth Anteater to play in an MLS game entering for LAFC in the 81st minute August 15 at Atlanta United FC.
· Molina earned a call-up to the El Salvadorian National Team last month playing in a friendly against Costa Rica hoping for an invite to the World Cup Qualifiers in September. Other 'Eaters on national teams have been Lester Hayes III playing for the Puerto Rico national team in World Cup Qualifier wins over Bahamas and Puerto Rico. Miguel Ibarra also spent time with the U.S. national team entering in three friendlies. Brad Evans also played in 21 caps adding a goal in a WCQ vs. Jamaica.
· The USL Championship level is home to eight Anteaters including the three in Las Vegas. Cameron Iwasa continues his run with Sacramento Republic FC which will make the jump to MLS soon. Elsewhere is Thomas Janjigian with Hartford Athletic, Tarek Morad at Oakland Roots, Ford Parker at Birmingham Legion FC, and long-time MLS pro Miguel Ibarra at San Diego Loyal FC.
· Below the USL Championship is USL League One containing a pair of 'Eaters with Victor Falck in his second season with Richmond Kickers and 2020 grad
Luca Mastrantonio with FC Tucson. Within the NISA league stands two more 'Eaters with Giovanni Ramos-Godoy at Stumptown AC and Los Angeles Force's
Seamus McLaughlin.
· Four Anteaters are thriving globally starting with the most successful in Lester Hayes III. He's found himself in Denmark with new club Dalum FC. He took part in Gold Cup qualifiers with Puerto Rico scoring once in his two matches. Prior to that, he spent three years in Spain with two different ninth-tier clubs as one of their top goalscorers. Darren Hamilton continues his career back in England now with Whitley Bay FC of England's ninth tier. Making his way with Latvia's Super Nova is long-time forward Renato Torquato. Former keeper Bryan Tian Keat See, who spent one season with the 'Eaters, is on his third club in southeast Asia now with Pulum Pinang in Malaysia.
