Aug. 24, 2006

LAS VEGAS -

UNLV Weekly Release (Aug. 24)
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A new era in UNLV men's soccer begins this weekend, as the Rebels open the 2006 season at Gonzaga on Friday under new head coach Mario Sanchez, who became the fourth coach in school history in January. The Rebels are looking to make a big turnaround from 2005, in which they suffered a school-record 17 losses (2-17-1), and went winless in the MPSF. UNLV did however post an undefeated record during its spring schedule and are ready to make a big turnaround in Sanchez's first year in Las Vegas.

The Rebels will begin the season with two games away from Las Vegas for the third straight year, beginning with Friday's match against the Zips in Spokane, Wash in a 1 pm start. Following that, UNLV will take on UC Riverside on Tuesday, Aug. 29 at 3 pm, before returning to Las Vegas to host the UNLV adidas Invitational on Sept. 1 and 3.

Gonzaga finished the 2005 season with an 7-9-4 mark, and was 5-5-2 in the West Coast Conference. The Zags, picked to finish seventh in the WCC this year, did return eight starters this year, including the conference's leading scorer in 2005, George Josten.

UC Riverside finished the 2005 season with a 6-12-1 mark, and finished fourth in the Big West with a 4-6 record. The Highlanders, predicted to finish fourth in the Big West preseason poll, return seven starters and 13 letterwinners from last year's squad.