THE SCHEDULE
Match 16
at Sonoma State (7-7-1, 2-5-1 CCAA)
Friday, Oct. 24 • 3 p.m.
Seawolf Soccer Field • Rohnert Park
Live Video • Live Stats

Match 17
at Humboldt State (8-5-1, 4-4 CCAA)
Sunday, Oct. 26 • 2 p.m.
College Creek Field • Arcata
Live Video • Live Stats

FOURTH-PLACE TRITONS BACK ON THE ROAD LOOKING TO MAINTAIN PLAYOFF SPOT
The UC San Diego men's soccer team rounds out a season-long four-match road stretch in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play this weekend. The Tritons are 9-4-2 overall and currently alone in fourth place in the 12-team league standings with 14 points from a 4-2-2 mark. Heading to the northern part of the state for a second successive week, they play at Sonoma State on Friday, Oct. 24, at 3 p.m., and at Humboldt State on Sunday, Oct. 26, at 2 p.m. Both matches this week will have live streaming video free of charge, and live stats. UCSD is 3-1-1 away from La Jolla in 2014 after a perfect 3-0 start.

NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
UCSD began the 2014 campaign exactly where it left off in 2013 in terms of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll. The association released its preseason listing back on Aug. 7. UCSD fell out of the top 25 when the first in-season edition was revealed on Sept. 9. The Tritons got as far up as No. 6 during an exceptional 2013 run, their highest position in the national poll of the Division II era. They remained sixth in this week's NSCAA West Region poll. More importantly, the first official NCAA regional rankings of the season came out on Wednesday, with the Tritons also No. 6 there. The top six teams in the NCAA's final West Region rankings will qualify for the 2014 NCAA Championship.

A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK
UCSD found the going difficult away from home last weekend, returning to La Jolla with a tie, loss and no goals scored over 90 minutes of action. The Tritons drew 0-0 at Cal State Monterey Bay on Friday, before falling 2-0 at SF State on Sunday. Junior goalkeeper Cameron McElfresh made three saves against the Otters to pick up the clean sheet. Sunday's loss was UCSD's first in October after an ubeaten 3-0-2 start to the month.

POSTSEASON PICTURE
UCSD dropped from third to fourth in the 12-team CCAA standings after last weekend's activity, now with 14 points from a 4-2-2 league record. There are three games left in the regular season, after which the top six squads qualify for the CCAA Championship. The Tritons are four points behind third-place Cal State Dominguez Hills, who they will host on Oct. 30, and two ahead of both Cal State San Bernardino and Sunday's opponent, Humboldt State. Cal State Stanislaus, the 2012 CCAA champion, is still lurking in seventh with 11 points, with Friday's foe, Sonoma State, tied for eighth with seven points.

PREMIER DEFENSE
UCSD is in the top 10 in the NCAA Division II in team goals-against average again through games played on Oct. 19, with a 0.64 mark putting the Tritons in 10th. They were up as high as seventh through Oct. 12. UCSD has boasted one of the top five defenses nationally in Division II in terms of GAA in each of the last two seasons. The Tritons led the country in the category in 2012 with a CCAA-record mark of 0.44, and finished fourth in 2013 at a 0.52 clip. UCSD had not allowed more than a single goal over 34 straight games going back to a 3-0 loss at Cal State Dominguez Hills on Oct. 14, 2012, prior to the 2-0 home loss to CPP on Sept. 28. Still, the Tritons have posted 29 shutouts over their last 53. Their seven shutouts in 2014 have all come over the last 11 matches.

LATE-GAME HEROICS FOR BAUMAN
UCSD's first two road games in the CCAA this season resulted in 1-0 victories over big rivals, with the lone goal coming both times from senior playmaker Brandon Bauman. The Huntington Beach product converted his penalty kick in the 75th minute of the Sept. 26 win at Cal State L.A., and on Oct. 5, struck in the 85th minute to down archrival Chico State.

SCORE TWO, GET THE WIN
UCSD is a perfect 7-0 in 2014 when scoring at least two goals. The Tritons are 2-4-2 when tallying less than two goals. Going back to late in the 2011 campaign, UCSD has won 22 straight contests when finding the back of the net two or more times. The team's last such loss was a 3-2 home decision to Cal State Dominguez Hills on Oct. 16, 2011. The Tritons have a pair of 4-0 triumphs and a 3-0 victory in 2014, all at home.

TRITON NOTES
After 11 wins by the final score of 1-0 over 2012 and 2013, UCSD has two in 2014 ... The Tritons' 4-0 victory over CSUSM was their most lopsided defeat and the most goals they have scored in a single game since a 5-0 triumph in the 2012 finale at Cal State Monterey Bay ... They since added a second 4-0 home win, over Cal State San Bernardino on Oct. 3, with three goals coming on free-kick organizations, and three via headers ... UCSD was picked to finish fifth by league head coaches in the CCAA preseason coaches' poll, garnering one of the 12 first-place votes ... Junior goalkeeper Cameron McElfresh has posted seven shutouts this season to give him 10 clean sheets for his career ... McElfresh ranks 11th nationally with his 0.642 goals-against average ... The four returning Triton starters from a year ago are midfielder Brandon Bauman, forward Alessandro Canale, and defenders Matthew McClure and Brett Sampiere (Solana Beach/Torrey Pines HS) ... Canale and Sampiere earned All-CCAA honorable mention a year ago ... Among 27 players on the 2014 roster are 15 returners and 12 newcomers ... Joining Bauman, Canale and McClure in the senior class are A.J. Beloff, Jacob Valadez and Nick Roberts ... Besides Sampiere, the only other San Diego products are freshman winger Zachary Lagotta (Cathedral Catholic HS) and junior goalkeeper Dean Meltz (Torrey Pines HS).

HEAD COACH JON PASCALE
Jon Pascale, now a two-time CCAA Coach of the Year through back-to-back honors in 2012 and 2013, has posted a 67-40-21 (.605) overall record in his seventh season in charge of the UCSD men's soccer program. He is 50-34-17 (.579) in arguably the toughest NCAA Division II conference in the nation, the CCAA. A 1-0 home victory over Sonoma State on Sept. 29, 2013, gave him career win No. 50, while a 2-0 triumph at Cal State Stanislaus 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 of last year in Turlock, a come-from-behind, 2-1 overtime triumph over rival Chico State in a CCAA Championship semifinal. He made his NCAA Championship debut as a head coach on Nov. 16, 2013, in La Jolla. The latest 2-0 home win over Cal State East Bay on Oct. 12 meant CCAA win No. 50 for Pascale, who coached his 100th CCAA tilt at CSUMB on Oct. 17.

ABOUT THE SEAWOLVES
Sonoma State enters the weekend at an even 7-7-1 overall and 2-5-1 in the CCAA. The Seawolves are in a two-way tie for eighth in the standings with seven points. They most recently endured a tough 3-2 loss at Cal State Dominguez Hills last Sunday in overtime, after having taken a 2-0 lead in the 66th minute. Sonoma State was in fact swept on the weekend, with another narrow 1-0 loss at No. 20 Cal State L.A. on Friday night. The Seawolves are 5-2 at home in 2014. Marcus Ziemer is in his 24th season at the helm of his alma mater.

SERIES HISTORY
Sonoma State leads the all-time series, 11-4-1. The Tritons have, however, taken three straight, including a 1-0 decision in La Jolla a season ago. They won at Sonoma State in 2012, marking just their second-ever victory in Rohnert Park. UCSD was also the 2-1 victor in double overtime in La Jolla in 2011.

ABOUT THE LUMBERJACKS
Humboldt State is 8-5-1 overall and an even 4-4 in the CCAA. The Jacks are still in the thick of the postseason race, tied with Cal State San Bernardino for fifth with 12 points, just two behind UCSD. HSU has followed up a nine-match unbeaten run (8-0-1) with four straight losses, including a sweep suffered at Cal State Dominguez Hills (2-0) and No. 20 Cal State L.A. (3-1) last weekend. The Jacks are an even 2-2-1 at home heading into a Friday date with eighth-ranked league leader Cal Poly Pomona at 3 p.m. Fred Jungemann is in his second season in charge of the Lumberjacks after spending the previous six years at Barry University in Florida.

SERIES HISTORY
UCSD has never lost to Humboldt State, leading the all-time series, 4-0-4. The Tritons won 2-0 in La Jolla a year ago. The teams did not meet in 2012. Previously, the Tritons edged the Jacks at home in 2011, 3-2, overturning a 2-1 halftime deficit. The last match-up in Arcata ended in a 1-1 tie in 2010.

NEW YEAR, NEW FORMAT IN CCAA
The CCAA has made changes to its regular-season and tournament formats in men's and women's soccer for the 2014 season. The six-team, two-division alignment is no more, now with just one 12-team league table. Rather than a 16-game regular-season schedule with two matches against divisional opponents and one against out-of-division foes, each team faces one another once, for a total of 11 CCAA contests. The top six teams in the final standings advance to the CCAA Championship, up from four in prior years. The first- and second-place finishers get first-round byes, with those two games held at campus sites of the higher seeds. The venue for the 2014 CCAA Championship semifinals and final has been announced as Warrior Stadium on the campus of Cal State Stanislaus in Turlock for the second year in a row and the fifth time in the last six years.

GEAR HERE
UCSD Athletics has partnered with Advanced-Online to provide a web-based, on-demand option for UCSD apparel and merchandise. Fans have access to over 600 products that can be processed and shipped within 24 hours. Visit the site at UCSDTritonsGear.com.

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UP NEXT
UCSD returns home to wrap up the 2014 regular season next Thursday, Oct. 30. Kickoff at Triton Soccer Stadium against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Senior Night is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.

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