Men's Soccer Opens 2018 Season at Coastal Carolina

Brandon Terwege and the Bruins look to start the new year on the right foot, taking on CCU on Friday.

Photo by: Scott Chandler

Men's Soccer Opens 2018 Season at Coastal Carolina

August 23, 2018 | Men's Soccer

GAME INFORMATION
No. 17 UCLA (1-0-0) at No. 18 Coastal Carolina (1-0-0)
Date/Time: Friday, Aug. 24, 2018 – 4:30 p.m. PT
Location: Conway, S.C. (CCU Soccer Stadium)
Live Stats/Stream: goccusports.com
Twitter Updates: @UCLAMSoccer

BRUINS KICK OFF 2018 SEASON ON EAST COAST
UCLA opens a new campaign this weekend, traveling to Conway, S.C. for a contest at Coastal Carolina. Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. PT (7:30 p.m. local time). Live stats and a stream are available on the Coastal Carolina athletics website. Fans can also follow the game on Twitter at @UCLAMSoccer.

UCLA IN SEASON OPENERS
UCLA is 6-5-3 in season openers in the Jorge Salcedo era, and has lost just once in the first game of the season since 2013. The Bruins have opened on the road just four times in the last 10 years, going 3-1 in those contests. In the last two season openers away from home, UCLA has outscored its opposition 8-4, including a 3-1 decision at Wake Forest in 2014 and a 5-3 win at San Francisco in 2017 that matched a Salcedo-era best for goals in a season opener.

IN THE POLLS
Though UCLA was not included in the top-25 of the United Soccer Coaches poll, the Bruins appeared in both the College Soccer News (No. 28) and Top Drawer Soccer (No. 17) rankings. In the United Soccer Coaches poll, the Bruins received the second-most votes of teams outside the top-25. Coastal Carolina, meanwhile, appeared in all three polls, coming in as high as No. 18 (United Soccer Coaches). They were also tabbed at No. 19 (Top Drawer) and No. 24 (College Soccer News).

SCOUTING THE CHANTICLEERS
Coastal Carolina is coming off a 14-9-2 season and a second consecutive Sun Belt Tournament Championship. The Chanticleers won NCAA Tournament games over Mercer and Clemson before being eliminated by Stanford in the third round. They reached as high as No. 8 in the national rankings. In 2018, they were picked to repeat as Sun Belt Champions, while they return stalwart Kervin Fadel, who was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year for the league. Yazeed Matthews is the team's top returning scorer, potting seven points a season ago. Coastal Carolina is facing a transition season, as the team brought in 15 newcomers to help replace the 15 departed seniors from last year's squad.

BRUINS BRING IN NATION'S TOP RECRUITING CLASS
Featuring four of the top-20 ranked academy players in the country, UCLA's 2018 recruiting class was deemed the best in the country by Top Drawer Soccer. This is the seventh time under Salcedo that UCLA has brought in the top class in the nation. Standouts include 2017 NJCAA National Player of the Year Mohammed Kamara (Monrovia, Liberia / Tyler JC) and freshmen Frankie Amaya (No. 6 national prospect / Santa Ana, Calif. / Pateadores Academy), Justin Garces (No. 16 prospect / Miami, Fla. / Atlanta United Academy), Matt Hundley (No. 18 prospect / Littleton, Colo / Colorado Rapids Academy), and AJ Vasquez (No. 19 prospect / Mira Loma, Calif. / FC Golden State Academy), all of whom have national team experience. Other heralded newcomers include freshman midfielder Cody Sundquist, Santa Monica City College transfer Carlos Rincon, freshman defender Paul Caspar, and Division I transfers Alexis Triadis (MF, Hartford) and Aristides Costeas (GK, St. John's).

HOLT RECEIVES PLENTY OF PRESEASON RECOGNITION
One of UCLA's top returners, senior defender Erik Holt has received plenty of preseason publicity ahead of his last season in Westwood. Chiefly, he was named to the MAC Hermann Award Watch List. The MAC Hermann Trophy is awarded annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year. Past Bruin winners include Leo Stolz (2014), Sasha Victorine (1999), and Brad Friedel (1992). In addition, Holt was selected to the College Soccer News Preseason All-America Third Team. He is coming off a junior campaign that saw him contribute to four shutouts and record three points, including his first career goal on Sept. 1 at No. 6 Maryland. Holt was also named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team (see below).

WALLIS ANNENBERG STADIUM OPENS FOR 2018 SEASON
After playing home games at Drake Stadium from 2000-17, the UCLA soccer teams have moved into a new home, Wallis Annenberg Stadium. The stadium, which seats 2,145, is located at the previously-named North Athletic Field, where UCLA played selected home games from 1967-99. The new stadium was made possible thanks to a $5 million lead gift from the Annenberg Foundation. The just-completed first phase of the stadium project includes grandstand seating and press box on the west side, a Daktronics LED video board and Musco Sports lighting. Future phases of the stadium project may include expanded stadium seating, a training room, student-athlete locker room, coaches' locker rooms, meeting spaces, ticketing space, and a new press box.

LOOKING AHEAD
After this week's contest in South Carolina, UCLA returns home to host San Diego in the Wallis Annenberg Stadium home opener on the night of Tuesday, Aug. 28. That match, scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. start, will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks.

FROSH PAIR MAKE TOP DRAWER PRESEASON BEST XI
Goalkeeper Justin Garces and midfielder Matt Hundley both were named to the Top Drawer Soccer Preseason Freshman Best XI. With two selections, UCLA was the lone program in the country to have two players on the Best XI. Washington (Ethan Bartlow, Defender) was the only other Pac-12 school represented.Two key members of the top recruiting class in the country, both Garces and Hundley have significant experience with the U.S. National Team. Both were members of the U-17 Residency Program, and both ended their academy careers inside the top-20 of the IMG Academy Top-150, with Garces coming in at No. 16 and Hundley at No. 18.

2017 IN REVIEW
UCLA went 7-10-1 in 2017, finishing fourth in the Pac-12 and outside the NCAA Tournament. Departed senior Brian Illoski led the team in scoring with 15 points (six goals), making the All-Pac-12 First Team alongside Erik Holt. A young team, featuring just one other senior besides Brian Illoski, production was spread out throughout the roster, with 14 players recording a point. Eric Iloski (three points, 1,390 minutes, All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention), Santiago Herrera (seven points), Milan Iloski (eight points), and Alex Knox (four points, 16 games) all had solid debut seasons for the Bruins. UCLA played its best stretch of soccer in early October, winning a season-best three straight from Oct. 5-15, with victories coming against Oregon State, Washington, and San Diego State.

EXHIBITION ROUNDUP
UCLA emerged victorious in both of its preseason exhibitions this summer, outscoring the opposition by an aggregate of 3-0 and allowing just two shots on goal combined. First, they comfortably took down Grand Canyon University 2-0 on Aug. 14 at Drake Stadium before edging out a 1-0 win over UC Irvine on Aug. 19 in the UCLA men's first game at Wallis Annenberg Stadium. Senior defender Matthew Powell opened the scoring against the Lopes, heading in an Erik Holt cross to go up 1-0. Seven minutes later, sophomore forward Santiago Herrera doubled the lead, getting a foot on a low Joab Santoyo cross and redirecting it inside the right post. GCU had just one shot on goal in the second half. Sophomore midfielder Andrew Paoli broke through for UCLA against the Anteaters in the 71st minute, hitting a 25-yard shot that took a carom and went back across and into the goal. UCI managed just one shot on goal for the entire contest.

PAIR OF BRUINS MAKE PRESEASON ALL-PAC-12 TEAM
Senior defender Erik Holt and senior midfielder Anderson Asiedu were both named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team. Normally an 11-man team, the 2018 iteration featured 12 players as the there was a tie for the 11th and final spot. Asiedu was a Second Team All-Pac-12 choice last year after recording two goals and two assists for four points.

UCLA PICKED THIRD IN PRESEASON COACHES POLL
IIn the annual preseason coaches poll, UCLA was picked to finish third in the Pac-12. The Bruins were one of two teams to receive first place votes. Stanford, which took five first place votes and received 25 overall points, was selected to finish on top. Washington received one more point (19) than UCLA in the poll.

HOLT, ASIEDU MAKE TOP DRAWER'S TOP-100
UCLA's two Preseason All-Pac-12 picks were both also tabbed to Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Top 100 player rankings. Holt, a Preseason All-American and Mac Hermann Watch List member, came in at No. 53. Asiedu cracked the list at No. 88. TDS hasn't released its Top 100 freshmen list as of Aug. 23, but the Bruins are bound to have multiple athletes included on that list.

LAST TIME OUT AGAINST COASTAL CAROLINA
The Bruins and Chanticleers met for the first time ever on Oct. 29, 2016 at Drake Stadium, with UCLA emerging victorious 3-1. The two teams traded goals in the first half - Felix Vobejda netted for the home team in the 14th minute - but the Bruins put the contest away with a pair of goals in the latter half. Seyi Adekoya - now playing internationally in Europe - potted the game-winner in the 59th minute, making a long run down the right wing and then blasting a shot inside the left post. UCLA put the game on ice in the last minute of regulation as Jose Hernandez finished off a through ball from Jackson Yueill to make it 3-1. Martin Melchor, now the head coach at Jacksonville College, was the goalscorer for CCU.

BROTHERLY LOVE
UCLA has two pairs of brothers on the roster: goalkeeper Cole and forward Blayne Martinez as well as forward Milan and midfielder Eric Illoski. Assuming a clean bill of health for all players, it's very possible all four will be on the field together this season.