10/11/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
About UCLA (9-1-0, 2-0-0): The Bruins come into Friday?s match ranked No. 2 in the latest Soccer America poll ... they have won seven straight, including three overtime victories ... UCLA began MPSF play last week, posting wins over Cal State Northridge and UC Santa Barbara ... Sasha Victorine ranks among the conference leaders with 19 points on eight goals this year ... Todd Saldana, in his first season with the Bruins, has a 58-57-6 (.504) overall coaching record in four years ... UCLA holds a 15-2-2 edge over the Rebels in the all-time series ... the two will renew their once-yearly rivalry after a three-year hiatus ... UCLA won the last meeting, a 7-1 decision in Los Angeles in 1995.
About Cal State Fullerton (10-2-0, 2-0-0): The Titans enter the week ranked No. 20 in the latest Soccer America poll ... they are fresh off two MPSF shutouts, also over Cal State Northridge and UC Santa Barbara ... they will face New Mexico in Albuquerque on Friday before coming to Las Vegas for Sunday?s game ... Duncan Oughton is the team?s scoring leader and ranks among the scoring leaders in the MPSF ... in 18 years as a collegiate head coach, all of them at CSUF, Al Mistri brings a mark of 210-141-30 (.591) into the week ... the Titans hold a slight edge in the series rivalry, leading 13-12-2 ... the Rebels defeated CUSF, 2-1 in overtime, in the last meeting between these team in 1995.
UNLV Head Coach Barry Barto: The winningest coach in the history of Rebel soccer, Barto is in his 18th season at the helm of the UNLV men?s program and his third as the school?s Director of Soccer ... he has a record of 175-132-34 (.563) at UNLV and a career record of 260-157-40 (.613) in his 24th year ... since his arrival in 1982, Barto has built Rebel soccer into a nationally recognized program, with five NCAA tournament appearances ... he recorded his 250th career win on Oct. 6, 1998 with the team?s victory over St. Mary?s.
Ranked Opponents: The schedule has not been a particularly easy one for UNLV this season. Three of the Rebels? 11 opponents have made an appearance in one of the three Top 25 polls while MPSF rivals UCLA and Cal State Fullerton, ranked No. 2 and No. 20 respectively, are slated for a Las Vegas visit in mid-October. One other opponent -- UMBC -- has not made an official appearance in the Top 25, but also received votes in this week?s NSCAA poll. UNLV?s 4-3 victory over No. 18 Gonzaga on Sept. 19 was the Rebels? first win over a ranked opponent since bumping off No. 2 Rutgers, 2-1, on Sept. 11, 1994. In that game, the Scarlet Knights held a 1-0 lead for 87 minutes, but UNLV scored twice in the final three minutes to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Counter Attack: The Rebels? ups and downs offensively continued this week. After exploding for a season-best six goals against Centenary on Sept. 26, UNLV netted just two goals in its next two games. Since a lineup adjustment before the Gonzaga match on Sept. 19 which cleared the way for senior Geoff Barto (Henderson, NV/Green Valley) to move from the defense to the midfield, Barto?s numbers have seen a significant jump. After managing just three shots and a goal through the Rebels? first seven matches, Barto has four shots over the last four games and scored both UNLV goals on the last trip ... Sophomore midfielder Andrew Hooker (Victoria, BC, Canada) broke out of a scoring slump after he headed in a free kick from B.J. McNicol (Centerville, UT/Viewmont) to defeat Air Force 1-0 on Sept. 24. He also scored the Rebels? go-ahead goal in a Sept. 26 match against Centenary, and was named the UNM Invitational?s Best Offensive Player. Defending the Post: Sophomore goalkeeper Bojo Ackah (Agoura, CA/Cascade College) was solid in his third career start, shutting down the Air Force offense. Ackah tallied the Rebels? first shutout this season and the first since Ryan Bledose (Las Vegas, NV/Eldorado) blanked UC Santa Barbara on Sept. 27, 1998. Ackah turned away 12 Falcon shots, made five saves in the effort, and has a 2-1 record in three complete games in the net. He allowed one goal over the weekend in 30 minutes of play ... freshman Reggie Bolden (Jacksonville, AR/Mills) earned his first career start on Sept. 17 against UMBC and has started every game on the defensive line since.
Tournament Champs: After four attempts this season, the Rebels finally brought home a tournament championship by winning the UNM Invitational on Sept. 26. The Rebels knocked off MPSF foe Air Force in a non-conference match before icing the tourney crown with a 6-3 victory over Centenary. The six goals was UNLV?s highest offensive output since a 7-2 victory over UC Santa Barbara in 1993. UNLV had hosted tournaments in each of the previous three weeks, splitting each weekend with a win and a loss. The title was the first since taking the Nike Goal Rush Classic in Fresno, CA last year and keeps alive a string of five years in which UNLV has gone unbeaten through at least one in-season tourney.
Close Calls: Talk about a number of close calls. In the Rebels? season opener at San Diego on Sept. 1, the Toreros held a 2-1 edge until the 89th minute, when they took advantage of a pressed forward UNLV squad and scored a third goal. Since that match, nine of the 10 games UNLV has played have been decided by one goal. Two of those opponents, Kentucky and UMBC, managed just 1-0 victories. UNLV went 4-7 last year in matches decided by a single score and are 4-5 in those contests this year.
Close Calls II: UNLV played its first overtime match of the year, falling to Vanderbilt 2-1 just nine minutes into extra play. That game marked the first time in 30 matches that the Rebels have gone the extra period. UNLV played five overtime matched in 1997, six in 1996 and five in 1995, but managed to complete all 18 games on the ?98 slate in regulation. Prior to the Vanderbilt match, UNLV?s last overtime game was a 1-1 tie against former WAC rival Fresno State in ?97. UNLV has not won an extra-inning affair since a 2-1 victory over Cal State San Bernardino late in the 1996 season.
Up Next: Following the Rebels? two home matches, they will return to the road with MPSF games scheduled at Cal State Northridge and UC Santa Barbara.
