SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The 25^th-ranked Cal State San Marcos men's soccer team seeks its second Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) Conference Championship this weekend in Clinton, Iowa.

The Schedule
A.I.I. Semifinals
Friday, November 14 – 5 p.m. PT, 7 p.m. CT
No. 25 Cal State San Marcos (13-3) vs. No. 12 Georgia Gwinnett (10-2-2)
Clinton, Iowa – South Campus Complex
Live Video | Live Stats
A.I.I. Tournament Central

A.I.I. Final (if necessary)
Saturday, November 15 – 2 p.m. PT, 4 p.m. CT
CSUSM vs. No. 2 Ashford (10-1-5) or Houston-Victoria (10-4-1)
Clinton, Iowa – South Campus Complex
Live Video | Live Stats
A.I.I. Tournament Central

CSUSM Men's Soccer
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A.I.I. Low Down
The Cougars received the No. 3-seed for this weekend's A.I.I. Championship on the campus of Ashford. CSUSM will take on No. 2-seed and defending A.I.I. champion Georgia Gwinnett in Friday's semifinal. The opposite semifinal will feature No. 1-seed Ashford and No. 4-seed Houston-Victoria. The winner of the A.I.I. tournament receives an automatic bid into the NAIA National Championship, which will begin on campus sites on Nov. 22 and conclude on Dec. 6.

Cougars' A.I.I. History
CSUSM has had considerable success at the A.I.I. Championship in the past. The Cougars will be making their seventh consecutive appearance in the tournament, where they have gone 7-5 all-time. After falling in the championship match in each of its first three appearances, CSUSM broke through with their first and only conference title in 2011. The Cougars have been eliminated in the semifinals in each of the last two seasons.

We're There!
After knocking on the door throughout the entire regular season, the Cal State San Marcos men's soccer team finally broke into the NAIA Men's Soccer Coaches' Top 25 Poll, the national office announced Tuesday. The Cougars totaled 99 points and came in at No. 25 in the eighth and final edition of the regular season. CSUSM is nationally mentioned for the second time in program history and for the first time since Sept. 24, 2013, due in large part to a seven-match winning streak.

Georgia Gwinnett Preview
All-time record vs. GGC: 0-1
Last game: L, 1-2 (Nov. 15, 2013) – CSUSM and GGC will be meeting in the A.I.I. semifinals for the second season in a row. The Grizzlies, who hosted last year's conference tournament, scored the game's first two goals and CSUSM could not find the equalizer in the 2-1 loss. Dustin Scibilia scored for CSUSM, who was seeded No. 2 in 2013.
GGC Breakdown: The Grizzlies are unbeaten in their last five games and are coming off an 8-0 win over Toccoa Falls (Ga.) and a 6-1 victory against Bob Jones (S.C.). Jamie King leads GGC with seven goals on the year.

Notes
Scott Rice registered a hat trick in the title match to lead the Cougars to their only A.I.I. crown in 2011 … Rice was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player that year … Rice, Sullivan Tobin and Erik Mueller are the only current CSUSM players who appeared in the 2011 A.I.I. title match … Sullivan Tobin is tied for the school's single-season record with 10 goals on the year … He has scored in five straight games and in eight of his last nine … Eric Lopez became the program's all-time leading scorer (20) and points-leader (56) on Oct. 31 against Antelope Valley … Landon Sherwood is 7-0 as the Cougars' goalkeeper in seven starts this season.

Grimes Playing Internationally
The Cougars will be without senior center back Mason Grimes for the conference tournament, not due to suspension, but due to a great playing opportunity. Grimes has been selected to represent the Guam men's national team as the "Matao" compete in the Eastern Asian Football Championship in Taiwan. Guam defeated Chinese Taipei, 2-1, in their opening game of Round 2 on Thursday morning. For more info on the EAFC, click here.

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