THE SCHEDULE
Match 7
at Cal State San Marcos (1-2, 0-0 CCAA)
Wednesday, Sept. 21 • 3 p.m.
The Cage • San Marcos
Live Video • Live Stats
Match 8
vs. Chico State (1-3-2, 0-1-1 CCAA)
Sunday, Sept. 25 • 11:30 a.m.
Triton Soccer Stadium • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats
NO. 21 UC SAN DIEGO TAKES UNBEATEN MARK INTO CCAA PLAY
The 21st-ranked University of California San Diego men's soccer team begins its 12-game California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) schedule with a pair of matches this week. UC San Diego, still unbeaten at 5-0-1, travels north to take on cross-county rival Cal State San Marcos (1-2) on Wednesday, Sept. 21, at 3 p.m. in The Cage. The Tritons then return home on Sunday, Sept. 25, facing rival Chico State (1-3-2, 0-1-1 CCAA) in their first appearance in front of the UCSD student body. That one has an 11:30 a.m. kickoff at Triton Soccer Stadium, with the women's game making up the second half of a Triton Soccer doubleheader at 2 p.m. UCSD is one of three undefeated West Region sides following the first three weeks of the season, alongside No. 6 Simon Fraser (5-0) and 13th-ranked CCAA foe Cal State LA (3-0-3). UCSD and CSUSM will be the last CCAA sides to begin league activity.
TRITON SOCCER MATCHDAY
Once again in 2016, all regular-season home matches at Triton Soccer Stadium are free to attend. Parking permits are required, however, on weeknights on the UC San Diego campus. Parking permits can be purchased at machines situated at corners of either of the nearest parking lots, behind the spectator stand, as well as the Hopkins Parking Structure adjacent to RIMAC. Parking is free on Saturday and Sunday.
TRITON SOCCER NOW ON UCSDTRITONS.TV!
For the very first time, all matches at Triton Soccer Stadium in 2016 feature a live video stream on UCSDtritons.tv. The platform, the product of a partnership between UC San Diego Athletics and local broadband services and technology giant ViaSat, is in its first full year. All broadcasts are in multi-camera high definition, and can be viewed from smartphones and tablets alongside desktop and laptop computers. UC San Diego alum and former baseball pitcher (2007-08) Tim Strombel (@Timmy2Sides) will primarily handle the play-by-play duties, with local personality Taylor Quellman (@TJQuellman) filling in, and an array of guests. Viewing is subscription-based, though it is free from UCSD campus IP addresses. A package that gives viewers access to all streamed events (baseball, basketball, soccer, softball, volleyball, water polo and more) throughout the 2016-17 academic year is available for $34.99. A single-day option can be purchased for $5.99, meaning doubleheaders are two-for-one. Events are archived.
MORE LIVE COVERAGE
All games have live stats. Select road matches will also have video and/or audio, including Wednesday at CSUSM with Seth Smith (@Cougar_Voice) describing the action. Fans can access live coverage from the Schedule/Results page, or by clicking on the links above. Starting lineups, live in-game updates and other news and notes can be found by following Triton Soccer all season long on the UCSD Athletics Twitter handle (@UCSDtritons). Finally, check out the CCAA live scoreboard here to keep up on results around the league.
COMPLETE THE TRITON TRIFECTA FOR GREAT PRIZES!
This is UCSD Welcome Week (#UCSDWelcomeWeek), with students back on campus and the fall quarter in session as of Thursday, Sept. 22. UCSD students who attend the men's water polo game on Wednesday (6 p.m.) and the women's volleyball match on Saturday night (7 p.m.), need to also have their student ID swiped at the soccer doubleheader this Sunday (11:30 a.m.) against Chico State, to be eligible to win this year's great Welcome Week Triton Trifecta prize package! The prize pack for the Triton Trifecta, sponsored by Toyota, USE Credit Union and UC San Diego Athletics, includes an iPad, GoPro camera and Triton Athletics gear! For a chance to win, you need to attend (for FREE) all three events this week and have your student ID scanned at each entrance.
FREE POSTERS!
Free posters of the 2016 UC San Diego fall sports will be available at Triton Soccer Stadium during Sunday's doubleheader. They can also be found at the kiosk inside the main RIMAC entrance.
RANKINGS REPORT
UC San Diego's unbeaten 5-0-1 mark through three weeks earned it a spot in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll for the first time this season, at No. 21. The Tritons also moved up in the West, from sixth to third. This is UCSD's first national ranking since it appeared at No. 9 in the 2014 preseason edition on Aug. 7.
A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK
UC San Diego posted two more shutouts last week, edging crosstown rival Point Loma, 1-0, at home on Wednesday night, before returning from its first road contest of the year at Concordia Irvine with a scoreless draw on Saturday. Senior forward Sam Palano had the lone goal against the Sea Lions, punching in a left-sided cross from Christian Cordell at the 31:00 mark. Cameron McElfresh was credited with four saves in net over the two clean sheets.
NOTABLE START
UC San Diego is off to a 5-0-1 start for the first time since the 2008 season, ninth-year head coach Jon Pascale's first in charge. The Tritons also won their first five games that year prior to a scoreless draw. They ultimately missed the postseason with a 10-6-2 overall record.
HOME DOMINANCE UNDER PASCALE
UC San Diego went 5-1-2 inside the friendly confines in 2015, and has won each of the first five of 10 total home dates in 2016. In fact, under head coach Jon Pascale over eight-plus years, the Tritons are 51-20-14 (.682) in La Jolla.
McELFRESH MATCHES COHEN MARK
On Saturday at Concordia, Cameron McElfresh posted his third individual shutout of 2016 and 22nd of his five-year UCSD career. That total matches former All-American teammate Josh Cohen's program record for the NCAA Division II era, since 2000. The school standard is held by UCSD Athletics Hall of Famer Brian Siljander (1987-90), at 37. Michael Madden (1991-93) is second with 29. McElfresh leads the league and the West Region, and is 10th nationally, with his goals-against average of .338.
YOU WANT MORE OFFENSE? HERE'S MORE OFFENSE
UC San Diego managed just 15 goals in 18 contests a year ago. The Tritons have 12 so far in 2016 through the six-match non-conference slate. They scored a pair in each of their first two matches, having not produced multiple scores in back-to-back games even once in 2015. UCSD then struck for six on Sept. 10 against Saint Martin's, achieving its first 6-0 scoreline since another such home defeat, that one over Cal State East Bay, in the 2010 finale (Oct. 31). Five of those goals came before the break, marking the first period of play for the Tritons with five goals, since the second frame of that East Bay matchup.
RETURN TO PREMIER DEFENSE
UCSD has allowed just two goals over 578:19, for a goals-against average of 0.31, tops in the CCAA and West Region, and fifth in the NCAA Division II. Only one has come from the run of play, the other a free-kick strike by Azusa Pacific. The team's current shutout stretch stands at 454:03 following four successive clean sheets. The Tritons boasted one of the top seven defenses nationally in Division II in terms of team GAA for three straight seasons between 2012-14, but fell back to the 48th spot a year ago (1.09). They led the country in that category in 2012 with a then-CCAA-record mark of 0.44, before finishing fourth in 2013 (0.52) and seventh in 2014 (0.65).
BASHTI'S BACK
After missing the entire 2015 season through injury, redshirt junior striker Malek Bashti has made a big impact in his return. He is in an eight-way tie for sixth in the NCAA Division II with a CCAA-best five assists, having entered the year with one career helper.
RALLY TRITONS
UCSD posted a pair of come-from-behind 2-1 wins at home courtesy of late goals after facing 1-0 deficits to begin the year. Sam Palano volleyed in the 68th-minute equalizer and turned provider for twin brother Nick Palano with just 1:41 left in the second overtime to down West Region rival Azusa Pacific on Sept. 1. Then it was Riley Harbour's hero turn on Sept. 3 against Westmont, as he slotted home his first of the year in the 79th minute, after Uly de la Cal had tied the match late in the first half.
OVERTIME STREAK OVER
The double-overtime triumph over Azusa Pacific on Sept. 1 marked UCSD's first overtime win since Malek Bashti's first collegiate goal took down rival Chico State in the 2013 CCAA semifinals in Turlock. The Tritons went 0-1-12 in overtime contests in 2014 and 2015, with 12 straight draws since, ironically, a 1-0 double-overtime loss to APU in La Jolla on Sept. 20, 2014.
#PALANOPOWER
The Sept. 1 season opener versus Azusa Pacific meant the first time in the four-year college careers of Nick Palano and Sam Palano that the identical twin brothers combined on a goal, and was also the first time they both scored in the same match.
TRITON NOTES
UC San Diego is 9-5-2 in CCAA openers after a 1-0 home triumph over eventual national runner-up Cal Poly Pomona last season, with the Tritons in fact winners of two straight, both 1-0 ... UCSD is 12-3-2 in season openers in its NCAA Division II era, since 2000, following the Sept. 1 defeat of Azusa Pacific, 2-1, with the Tritons an unbeaten 3-0-1 over their last four ... UCSD was picked fifth in the CCAA preseason coaches' poll, with reigning West Region champion CPP the favorite.
2016 SEASON OUTLOOK
UC San Diego had no seniors on its 2015 roster, but has eight in 2016. The Tritons welcome back the core of their defense in redshirt seniors Cameron McElfresh in goal and Brett Sampiere and Kuba Waligorski on the back line alongside junior Kyle Panganiban. Waligorski is a two-time All-CCAA Second Team pick, with McElfresh gaining All-CCAA honorable mentions for each of the past two years without missing a single minute between the posts. Sampiere, making a permanent return to his natural spot at right back, earned All-CCAA honorable mentions in 2013 and 2015. Nolan Mac and Jeff Powers were in the lineup at times and will vie for minutes.
The offensive production should be boosted by the return of Malek Bashti after missing the entirety of 2015 through injury. Junior Uly de la Cal tied for the team high in total points from two goals and three assists a year ago. Senior Riley Harbour, one of two Tritons he shared that designation with, is back in central midfield, as are Justice Duerksen, Zachary Lagotta and Nick Palano among numerous wing options. Lagotta was All-CCAA honorable mention as a sophomore in 2015. Forward Sam Palano joins his identical twin brother as a fourth-year senior who will be counted on.
2015 REWIND
UC San Diego is coming off of three successive postseason appearances in the form of the CCAA Tournament, with NCAA Championship berths in 2013 and 2014. The Tritons went 6-6-6 in 2015, breaking a string of five straight years with an overall winning percentage of greater than .500 under head coach Jon Pascale. UCSD lost just one of its last seven regular-season contests, and was 5-3-4 in league play.
ROSTER NOTES
Among 29 players on the 2016 roster are 23 returners, just six newcomers, and eight seniors. There are four San Diego products, in redshirt senior right back Brett Sampiere (Solana Beach/Torrey Pines HS), junior winger Zachary Lagotta (Cathedral Catholic HS), sophomore forward Nathaniel Bloom (Encinitas/San Dieguito HS Academy) and redshirt freshman midfielder Daniel Boemer (San Diego/Scripps Ranch HS).
CCAA FORMAT UNCHANGED
For the third year in a row, the CCAA slate consists of a single round robin, with every team facing off once against one another for 12 matches total, and the top six sides (based on most points; three for a league win, one for a tie) in the final regular-season standings qualifying for the 2016 CCAA Tournament. Cal State San Marcos, a new addition in 2015, is ineligible again this time around. First-round matchups will take place on the campuses of the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds on Tuesday, Nov. 1. The semifinals and final will be hosted by Stanislaus State for the sixth time in the last eight years, at Warrior Stadium in Turlock, Nov. 4-6.
HEAD COACH JON PASCALE
Jon Pascale, a two-time CCAA Coach of the Year through back-to-back honors in 2012 and 2013, has posted a 79-46-32 (.605) overall record in his ninth season in charge of the UC San Diego men's soccer program. He is 56-37-23 (.582) in arguably the toughest NCAA Division II conference in the nation, the CCAA. Pascale has guided the Tritons to six straight campaigns with an overall record of .500 or better, and six winning seasons out of his eight. They are coming off of three successive berths in the CCAA Tournament, with trips to the NCAA Championship in 2013 and 2014. A 1-0 home victory over Sonoma State on Sept. 29, 2013, gave him career win No. 50, while a 2-0 triumph at Stanislaus State in the very next match on Oct. 4 marked his 100th contest at the Triton helm. Pascale directed his first postseason tilt on Nov. 8, 2013, in Turlock, a come-from-behind, 2-1 overtime win over rival Chico State in a CCAA semifinal. He made his NCAA Championship debut as a head coach on Nov. 16, 2013, in La Jolla. A 2-0 home decision over Cal State East Bay on Oct. 12, 2014, meant CCAA win No. 50 for Pascale, who coached his 100th CCAA tilt at Cal State Monterey Bay five days later.
ABOUT THE COUGARS
Cal State San Marcos (1-2, 0-0 CCAA) is in its second year as a CCAA member. CSUSM is still not eligible, however, for the six-team 2016 CCAA Tournament. The Cougars will have been idle since a 3-0 home win over Saint Martin's on Sept. 12, when they take the field against the Tritons on Wednesday. They were picked to place ninth in the preseason poll, and are an even 1-1 in San Marcos in 2016. Ron Pulvers is in his 11th season in charge.
SERIES HISTORY
UCSD leads the all-time series, 4-1, with shutout home victories in each of the past two seasons, and three in a row in all (275:29). The Tritons won 4-0 on Sept. 14, 2014, through two goals in each half, and then 1-0 in the first CCAA meeting last Oct. 21 on a 76th-minute Eric Young header. The sides previously faced off on Aug. 28, 2009, UCSD registering a 1-0 home win in the season opener. The series was witness to a thriller in La Jolla on Sept. 5, 2008. The Cougars began the scoring with a penalty kick at 84:31. UCSD equalized at 86:19, and stole it with a winner 36 seconds from the end of regulation. CSUSM's lone success was a 3-2 decision, again in La Jolla, on Sept. 21, 2007.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS
Chico State (1-3-2, 0-1-1 CCAA) was picked to place seventh in the CCAA table. The Wildcats are at Cal State San Marcos on Friday afternoon, before heading further south on Sunday. They are a winless 0-2-2 over the last four, all on the road, since an impressive 3-2 home win over traditional West power Seattle Pacific on Sept. 3. Chico State managed just a single goal during that stretch. Senior striker Omar Nuño, the 2015 CCAA Newcomer of the Year out of Santa Rosa College, has tallied all four Wildcat goals on the year, including a hat trick against SPU, the winner coming via free kick in the 73rd minute. Felipe Restrepo is in his ninth season in charge.
SERIES HISTORY
UCSD leads the all-time series, 11-6-4. The teams played to a 1-1 draw in Chico last Oct. 23, a result that proved critical to the Tritons earning a third successive CCAA Tournament berth, at the expense of the Wildcats. Riley Harbour and Omar Nuño traded goals in that one. UCSD posted a 1-0 win in Chico on Oct. 5, 2014, through an unassisted Brandon Bauman strike at 84:52. The rivals split their two regular-season meetings in 2013, with each winning 1-0 on the road. Chico State's triumph came in overtime to snap a seven-match win streak for the Tritons, ranked sixth at the time. UCSD had earlier won in the 14th-ranked Wildcats' home opener on Taylor Wirth's first collegiate goal in the 28th minute. The sides then faced off twice in the postseason. In the semifinals of the CCAA Tournament in Turlock, Malek Bashti's first career goal in overtime was the difference as UCSD rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit to take it, 2-1. Finally in the second round of the NCAA Championship, in front of 985 fans in La Jolla, the teams played to a 1-1 draw before UCSD advanced via penalty-kick tiebreaker.
GEAR UP
For the latest in Triton athletic gear, make sure to visit ucsdtritonsgear.com. Run by UCSD Athletics' online partner Advanced-Online, the site provides an on-demand option for Triton Athletic apparel and merchandise. Fans have access to over 600 products that can be processed and shipped within 24 hours.
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UCSD home athletic events, and much more!
SOCIAL MEDIA (#AllForOne)
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UP NEXT
The Tritons remain in La Jolla for two more CCAA contests next week, hosting Sonoma State on Friday, Sept. 30, at 4:30 p.m., and then Humboldt State on Sunday, Oct. 2, at 11:30 a.m. Both kick off Triton Soccer doubleheaders with the women.
#AllForOne
