SAN MARCOS, Calif. – Riding a seven-game unbeaten streak, the (RV) Cal State San Marcos men's soccer team (4-0-3) will finish its six-game road trip as it opens CCAA play in Rohnert Park at Sonoma State (2-1-4) on Friday at 3 p.m. before heading north to Cal Poly Humboldt (1-3-3) for an 11:30 a.m. match on Sunday in Arcata.
 
LAST WEEK

• CSUSM concluded non-conference play on the road at Cal State East Bay with a 0-0 draw.
• Ryan Meinardus led the team with two shots while Tony Flores ended the game with three saves.
• It was the Cougars' third shutout of the season.

 
COUGARS BY THE NUMBERS

• CSUSM dropped out of the United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II Top 25 Poll but is still receiving votes.
• The Cougars' seven-game unbeaten streak is the longest in the program's NCAA Division II era (2015-present).
• CSUSM has the top shot accuracy in the CCAA and ranks 13th nationally at .539.
• With a team save percentage of .833, the Cougars rank second in the conference and 15th nationally.
• CSUSM's shutout percentage of .429 ranks third in the CCAA and 31st nationally.
• The Cougars' have the fourth-best goals-against average in the conference and rank 24th nationally at .857.
• CSUSM's 4.29 saves per game rank second in the CCAA.
• Ryan Meinardus is one of 15 players in Division II with three game-winning goals this season.
• Meinardus has the fifth-best shot accuracy in the nation at .750 while putting up the seventh-most shots on goal per game at 2.14.
• Meinardus is tied for the most goals in the CCAA with five.
• Tony Flores has the second-best save percentage in the conference at .824 and ranks 23rd nationally.
• Making the second-most saves per game in the CCAA at 4.00, Flores is allowing the fourth-fewest goals at .857, ranking 34th nationally.

CCAA OPENER AT SSU

• The Seawolves ended non-conference play this past Saturday with its third consecutive tie in a 1-1 draw against Cal Poly Humboldt. SSU had previously posted draws of 0-0 against Dominican on Sept. 22 and 3-3 at Menlo on Sept. 19.
• SSU concluded non-conference play with a 2-0-2 record at home.
• The Seawolves' lone loss for the season came in the season opener at Seattle Pacific on Sept. 5.
• Jose Rios Lara leads SSU with three goals and six points while Michael Gray has five points with two goals and an assist.
• The Seawolves are taking the second-most shots per game in the CCAA 15.43, but their shot accuracy of .389 ranks 10th in the league.
• SSU is allowing the fifth-fewest goals in the conference at 1.286 per game while scoring the fifth-fewest goals per game at 1.57
• The Cougars are still looking for their first win against the Seawolves with a record of 0-4-2 in six meetings.
• CSUSM and SSU settled for a 2-2 draw in San Marcos last season.
• The Seawolves have won both meetings against the Cougars when playing in Rohnert Park in 2022 and 2015.
• SSU was picked to finish eighth in the 2024 CCAA Preseason Coaches Poll.

ROAD TRIP FINALE AT HUMBOLDT

• CSUSM will conclude its six-game road trip at Cal Poly Humboldt on Sunday.
• Before facing CSUSM, Humboldt will play Cal State East Bay on Friday.
• The Lumberjacks concluded non-conference play with a 1-1 tie at Sonoma State last Saturday.
• Humboldt's lone non-conference win came at Jessup on Sept. 19, winning 2-1.
• The Lumberjacks were winless in their two home non-conference games, taking a 1-1 draw against Westminster and a 2-0 loss to Dominican on Sept. 6 and 8.
• Duke Romanchak leads Humboldt with two goals and four points for the season.
• Humboldt keeper Adrian Gallardo leads the CCAA with 4.71 saves per game while holding the fifth-best save percentage at .750.
• Scoring the second-fewest goals in the CCAA at 1.00 per game, the Lumberjacks are conceding the ninth-most goals per game at 1.523.
• Humboldt is taking the fewest shots per game at 10.43, but its shot accuracy ranks fourth in the CCAA .493.
• CSUSM is 5-2-1 in the all-time series against Humboldt and is 1-1-1 when playing the Lumbjacks in Arcata.
• The Cougars have won three of the past four meetings against the Lumberjacks with wins of 2-0 and 2-1 in 2023 and 2022, respectively.
• CSUSM's lone win on the road at Humboldt came in the very first meeting in 2015, taking a 3-2 victory.
• Humboldt was picked to finish 10th in the 2024 CCAA Preseason Coaches Poll.

2024 OUTLOOK

• CSUSM was picked to finish seventh in the 2024 CCAA Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll.
• The Cougars' roster of 29 includes 19 returners and 10 newcomers.
• Curtis Collazos was named to 2024 CCAA Men's Soccer Watchlist after earning All-CCAA first team honors in 2023.

THE PULVERS FILE

• This season marks the 19th season for head coach Ron Pulvers at CSUSM.
• Pulvers has a 138-122-37 (.527) record as CSUSM's head men's coach.
• In 26 seasons as a collegiate head men's soccer coach, Pulvers holds a 264-193-51 (.570) career record.
• He was 84-42-24 (.640) while in charge of the CSUSM women's program.
• From 2006-13, Pulvers led both the CSUSM men's and women's soccer teams.