2012 Prospectus

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The defending Association of Independent Institutions champion Cal State San Marcos men's soccer team will open its season Friday at Holy Names.

THE SCHEDULE
Match 1
Friday, August 31 – 3:00 p.m.
Cal State San Marcos (0-0) at Holy Names (0-0)
Oakland, Calif. – Merritt Junior College

AND… WE'RE BACK
The 2012 CSUSM men's soccer team welcomes back 16 letterwinners and six starters from its 2011 A.I.I. title squad. Reigning A.I.I. Player of the Year Jake Kaiser returns for his junior year and will be joined in the midfield by A.I.I. Tournament Most Valuable Player Scott Rice. The top seven goal-scorers from a year ago return, including Rice and Eric Lopez, who tied for the team-lead with six scores apiece. Sophomore Alex Brunsell will help round-out the middle of the pitch for CSUSM. Used primarily as a substitute during his freshman season, Brunsell tied for the team-lead with three assists and was third with five goals. Anchoring the Cougar back line will be junior defender Erik Mueller, who's started 35 of the 36 career matches he's played at CSUSM. The Newbury Park native has looked strong in the Cougars' preseason scrimmages against Cal State Dominguez Hills and UC San Diego.

NEWBIES
CSUSM re-stocked on a fresh crop of talent to replace 2012 graduates Jordan Shadeed, Richie Kaiser, Max Blumenshine and Andrew Castro. The Cougars have 16 newcomers in total, many of whom are expected to make an impact early on. Freshmen Yuki Hata (midfielder), Thor English (forward), Ryan Kisgen (forward) and Jeremiah Eastman (defender) have put together strong summer camps ahead of the Cougars' first contest. Three new goalkeepers – Landon Sherwood (redshirt in 2011), Zach Sheppard and Grant Essig – are competing with returner Chris Quaresma for the job between the pipes.

HIT THE ROAD JACK
The Cougars will be on the road for their first three games against Holy Names, Pomona-Pitzer and Fresno Pacific, respectively, before returning for their home-opener September 11 against The Master's College. CSUSM went 7-4-1 away from home in 2011 and is 13-8-1 on the road over the last two seasons.

A LOOK BACK
It was almost the season that never was for the 2011 Cougars. After being shutout in their first three matches of the year, CSUSM responded with five straight wins (Sept. 5-17) while outscoring its opponents 14-4 in the process. After a narrow 1-0 loss to No. 18 Concordia (Calif.), CSUSM earned points in four of its next six games prior to the A.I.I. Tournament. By then everything was clicking for the Cougars; they steamrolled Marygrove (Mich.) 3-0 before taking down host Thomas University (Ga.) 3-1 to earn CSUSM men's soccer's first A.I.I. crown and its first-ever NAIA tournament berth. The Cougars' fell in the First Round to Azusa Pacific.

FUTBOL TAILGATE
Join CSUSM Athletes September 11 for the Cougar Tripleheader and pre-game tailgate before the men's and women's soccer games. The tailgate starts at 2:00 p.m. at The Clarke. Then, head on down to the men's game against TMC at 3:00. The CSUSM women play Biola at 5:00 p.m.

STAYIN' SOCIAL
Get an inside look into Cougar Athletics via Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Like us at facebook.com/CSUSMcougars and follow along at twitter.com/CSUSMcougars. Also, you can watch highlights, previews and recaps at youtube.com/CSUSMathletics. Stay posted for giveaways and prizes throughout the season!

GOLF FOR A CAUSE
The fifth-annual Cougar Scramble Golf Tournament will be on Monday, November 5 at Shadowridge Country Club in Vista. Proceeds from the tournament will go toward student scholarships at Cal State San Marcos. Visit csusmcougars.com/cougarscramble to sign up today.

A.I.I. TOURNAMENT COMING TO CSUSM
A year after the men's and women's soccer teams hoisted the A.I.I. championship banner, Cal State San Marcos will host this year's A.I.I. Championship Tournament November 9-10 at Mangrum Field and the Multipurpose Field. The six-game tournament will crown a men's and women's champion and hand two automatic NAIA tournament berths to the winners.