Sept. 10, 2013
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS
Copa de Causeway Tournament
Sept. 6 vs. Seattle: W, 1-0
Sept. 8 vs. CSU Bakersfield: L, 2-0
THIS WEEK'S ACTION
Match 5
UC Davis Aggies (1-3-0)
at
Saint Mary's Gaels (2-1-0)
Thursday, Sept. 12 - 4 p.m.
Saint Mary's Stadium (5,500) - Moraga, Calif.
Live Stream: smcgaels.com
Live Stats: smcgaels.com
Match 6
San Francisco Dons (2-1-0)
at
UC Davis Aggies
Sunday, Sept. 15 - 5 p.m.
Aggie Soccer Field (1,000) - Davis, Calif.
Gametracker:
In-game Twitter Updates: @UCDavisInGame
DAVIS, Calif. - UC Davis will remain local for this week's non-conference matches as the Aggies will travel to Moraga, Calif., Thursday to face Saint Mary's in a 4 p.m. contest before returning to Aggie Soccer Field Sunday to face San Francisco, at 5 p.m.
After their match against the Dons, the Aggies will not host a home event until UC Irvine visits Davis on Oct. 4, in UC Davis' Big West home opener
Aggie men's soccer fans can access live stats and a stream of Thursday's match at ucdavisaggies.com, follow Sunday's action on Twitter @UCDavisInGame or by utilizing Gametracker, also at ucdavisaggies.com.
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
UC Davis defeated Seattle 1-0, on Sept. 6, to push head coach Dwayne Shaffer's mark in home openers to 11-3-3. With that victory, the Aggies have earned victories in their inaugural home match of the year in seven of the last 10 seasons.
Washington, the only team to defeat UC Davis as a Division I program, escaped Davis with a win in double overtime in the Aggies 2009 home opener.
WEST COAST (CONFERENCE) TOUR
Thursday's match at Saint Mary's is the first of four consecutive against teams from the West Coast Conference. UC Davis will host San Francisco on Sunday before traveling to San Diego and Loyola Marymount next Friday and Sunday.
THE NEEDLE NOW POINTS IN OUR DIRECTION
By defeating Seattle in its season opener, UC Davis now holds the all-time series lead at 3-2-1. UC Davis and Seattle fought to a 1-1 tie in their last head-to-head meeting in 2011, a match that also took place at Aggie Soccer Field.
Other Aggie victories over the Redhawks took place in 2002 and 2003.
HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT
Senior midfielder Alex Aguiar had led the Aggies' attack this season with 15 shots, a team-high total that also ranks him second among Big West players.
SCOUTING SAINT MARY'S
Notwithstanding its previously played game at Cal State Northridge last Sunday, one Saint Mary's lost 2-1 in overtime, all of the Gaels' games played this year have taken place at home. After opening the season with consecutive wins against Air Force and LIU Brooklyn, Saint Mary's will host UC Davis and Sacramento State this week.
Redshirt freshman forward Carlo Eikani leads the Gaels with two goals and is one of five players to score for Saint Mary's this season. Freshman midfielder Ever De La Torre, sophomore defender Will Kendall, junior defender Bobby Conner and junior are responsible for one goal each.
Of head coach Adam Cooper's 14 returning letterwinners, seven will grace Saint Mary's starting lineup on a regular basis this season. Unlike UC Davis, a team that possesses 15 upperclassmen, the Gaels' skew young with underclassmen comprising all but seven of the 29 spots on their roster.
SCOUTING SAN FRANCISCO
Cross-Causeway rival Sacramento State and UC Davis will swap their respective Thursday afternoon opponents Sunday's afternoon when San Francisco visits Aggie Soccer Field.
UC Davis is the midpoint of a three-match road trip that takes the Dons to different Big West locales; after facing the Hornets Thursday, and the Aggies Sunday, USF will complete its first road trip of the year at Cal Poly next Friday.
All four of the Dons' first games played took place at Negoesco Field; After defeating LIU Brooklyn and Air Force by identical 2-0 scores, San Francisco fell to No. 10 Cal 1-0 before bouncing back to defeat San Jose State last Sunday by a 2-1 score.
Junior Chase Hauser and redshirt freshman Connor Gaal possess similar numbers in goal for San Francisco, each has started two games, possess a 0.50 goals against average, allowed only one goal and shutout one opponent. The only difference lies in each `keepers save total, one where Gaal leads Hauser by a slim 9-8 margin.
KEEPING `KEEPERS ON THEIR TOES
UC Davis has outshot its opponents in all four matches played this season, recording 84 compared to a collective 42 by opposing teams. The Aggies have also taken 25 shots on goal and allowed 18.
RECORD BREAKDOWN
This season, UC Davis men's soccer is:
1-3 overall
0-0 against Big West teams
1-1 at home
0-2 on the road
0-0 in neutral site matches
0-0 against ranked opponents
1-3 in shutouts
1-1 in matches decided by one goal
0-2 in matches decided by two goals
0-0 in matches decided by three or more goals
0-0 in overtime
1-0 when UC Davis scores first
0-3 when opponents score first
1-0 leading at halftime
0-2 trailing at halftime
0-1 tied at halftime
1-3 when the Aggies outshoot opponents
0-0 when opponents outshoot the Aggies
0-0 when shots are tied
1-3 when the Aggies take more corner kicks
0-0 when opponents take more corner kicks than the Aggies
0-0 equal number or corner kicks
0-1 when the Aggies commit more fouls
1-2 when opponents commit more fouls
0-0 equal number of fouls
DISSECTING THE NUMBERS
Compared to their Big West counterparts, the Aggies possess the following totals (rankings in parentheses):
Shots: 84 (1)
Goals Against Average: 1.25 (6)
Saves: 13 (3)
Shutouts: 1 (T-3)
Corners: 37 (1)
Offsides: 6 (6)
TOP TOTALS
Entering this week's action, numerous Aggies possess top-10 totals in the Big West (rankings in parentheses)
Shots: Alex Aguiar - 15 (2); Ryan Gross, Matt Sheldon - 9 (T-9)
Shots Per Game: Alex Aguiar - 3.75 (5); Ryan Gross - 3.00 (T-8)
Goals: Matt Sheldon - 1 (T-8)
Assists: Nick Grigoriev - 1 (T-8)
Game-Winning Goals: Matt Sheldon - 1 (T-3)
Goals Against Average: Omar Zeenni - 1.25 (6)
Save Percentage: Omar Zeenni - .722 (5)
Saves: Omar Zeenni - 13 (3)
Saves Per Game: Omar Zeenni - 3.25 (4)
Shutouts: Omar Zeenni - 1 (T-3)
Shutouts Per Game: Omar Zeenni - 0.25 (T-5)
CONTINUING HIS CLIMB
With his effort against Seattle on Sept. 6, senior goalkeeper Omar Zeenni is now No. 2 all time with 14 shutouts, breaking a three-way tie with Jason Kong (1998-2001) and Barry Wong's (1990-91) 13 clean sheets.
Zeenni sits three shutouts shy of matching the program record of 17 held by Nic Platter (2000-03).
MAKING HIS MARK IN THE BIG WEST CONFERENCE
Perhaps the top returning netminder in the Big West is senior Omar Zeenni. An All-Big West Second Team selection in 2012, Zeenni recorded an impressive 0.91 goals against average with six shutouts. He enters his senior year tied for ninth in Big West annals with a 1.00 career GAA. As long as he stays healthy, Zeenni should break into the Big West top 10 in shutouts, goalie minutes and matches in goal by season's end.
DEFENDING REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS PICKED SECOND IN PRESEASON POLL
Despite three first-place votes, the UC Davis men's soccer team was picked to finish second in the North Division in the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll, the league announced on Thursday.
The Aggies received three of the eight potential first-place votes and picked up 23 total points, but UC Santa Barbara narrowly edged them out with five first-place votes and 25 points. Cal Poly checked in third in the North Division with 21 points and Sacramento State was last with 11.
UC Davis claimed the program's first Big West regular season title in 2012 as they bested their North Division competition with a 7-3-0 conference record.
In the South Division, defending Big West Tournament champion Cal State Northridge came in first with six first-place votes and a league-high 30 points. UC Irvine was picked to finish second with one first-place vote and 21 total points. Cal State Fullerton also picked up a first-place vote but came in third with 16 points and UC Riverside was last with 13 points.
THE SEASON BEFORE THE SEASON
UC Davis will host three non-conference matches before hosting UC Irvine in its inaugural Big West contest of the year. After hosting Seattle and CSU Bakersfield, on Sept. 6 and 8 respectively as part of the Copa de Causeway, UC Davis will battle San Francisco, at Aggie Soccer Field, on Sunday, Sept. 15. All home non-conference matches will kickoff at 5 p.m.
Just like the 2012 campaign, UC Davis will compete in six road events before facing the Anteaters; this year, the Aggies will travel to Portland (Aug. 30), Oregon State (Sept. 1), Saint Mary's (Sept. 12), San Diego (Sept. 20), Loyola Marymount (Sept. 22) and New Mexico (Sept. 27).
TRULY A TEAM EFFORT
UC Davis finished a 10-7-4 record last season, marking the first time since 2008 that the program collected double-digit victories. The Aggies managed that without a go-to scorer, as four different players tied for the team lead with three goals apiece.
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE AGGIES' ROSTER
Included below is a breakdown of UC Davis' 2013 roster by class, primary position and geography.
Freshmen (9): Ryan Caro, Kirk Kappelhoff, Justin Kitts, Dashiell MacNamara, Logan Magonigal, Armando Quezada, Isaac Stuart, Spencer Williams, Connor Willis-Hong
Sophomores (6): Eric Budniewski, Ryan Gross, Hoshang Hatifie, Lucas Mohageg, John Piasta, Kris Schultz
Juniors (8): Andre Brown, Brian Ford, Eddie Manella, Ramon Martin Del Campo, Sam Hoeck, Ian Palmer, Matt Sheldon, Matt Wiesenfarth
Seniors (7): Alex Aguiar, Michael Garrick, Nick Grigoriev, Alex Henry, Elliott Hord, Kevin Schulte, Omar Zeenni
Goalkeepers (4): John Piasta, Armando Quezada, Kris Schultz, Omar Zeenni
Defenders (9): Brian Ford, Ryan Gross, Alex Henry, Sam Hoeck, Ramon Martin Del Campo, Lucas Mohageg, Ian Palmer, Spencer Williams, Connor Willis-Hong
Midfielders (12): Alex Aguiar, Andre Brown, Eric Budniewski, Ryan Caro, Hoshang Hatifie, Elliott Hord, Kirk Kappelhoff, Justin Kitts, Logan Magonigal, Eddie Manella, Kevin Schulte, Isaac Stuart,
Forwards (5): Michael Garrick, Nick Grigoriev, Dashiell MacNamara, Matt Sheldon, Matt Wiesenfarth
California (28): Alex Aguiar, Andre Brown, Eric Budniewski, Ryan Caro, Brian Ford, Michael Garrick, Nick Grigoriev, Ryan Gross, Hoshang Hatifie, Alex Henry, Sam Hoeck, Elliott Hord, Justin Kitts, Dashiell MacNamara, Eddie Manella, Logan Magonigal, Ramon Martin Del Campo, Lucas Mohageg, Ian Palmer, John Piasta, Armando Quezada, Kevin Schulte, Kris Schultz, Isaac Stuart, Matt Wiesenfarth, Spencer Williams, Connor Willis-Hong, Omar Zeenni
Australia (1): Kirk Kappelhoff
Oregon (1): Matt Sheldon
