IRVINE, Calif. --- UC Irvine men's soccer heads into regular season play after three exhibition matches in the books.

Head Coach Yossi Raz commented on the team's status as they begin in just under a week following preseason results against competition like Grand Canyon and No. 11 LMU.

"I don't think we have a fully complete team yet, but we are definitely progressing. I think the spirit is good and the way we conduct ourselves is something I'm really excited about. We have a lot of older players that make it easier on the coaching staff and how we coach these games. They understand how to approach things and how to think about it. We played different opponents with different styles and ideas .In each match we worked on different elements. Like any team, some things went right and others not, but we have a nice group that is willing to keep working hard for each other and keep building themselves, and that's what I'm excited about the most."

One of those veterans is senior keeper Luke Pruter who was named by the United Soccer Coaches as a Goalkeeper to Watch in the preseason after he comes off All-Far West Region accolades and coming off a season where he saved over 70% of shots, pulled in nine wins, and amassed eight shutouts.

Senior captain and defender Mathias Winum echoed coach Raz's assessment of the team through the preseason stemming from promising results and feels the team is ready for the challenges ahead which include three preseason ranked opponents in their first four regular season matches.

The Anteaters look to defend their Big West Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance starting with a road match Thursday, August 22 at No. 4 Oregon State before their home opener Thursday, August 29 hosting No. 14 Vermont.