Aug. 31, 2009

SAN DIEGO -

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Aztec Men's Soccer Opens 2009 Season Tuesday Versus LMU; Plays Host to Local Derby San Diego During Family, Friends and Alumni Weekend
The San Diego State men's soccer team begins its quest for a Pac-10 Championship and NCAA tournament berth Tuesday with a non-conference home match against Loyola Marymount at 4 p.m. Following the game with the Lions (0-0), SDSU will play host to Family, Friends and Alumni Weekend with a contest against its alumni on Saturday (1 p.m.) and a long-awaited match versus local derby San Diego on Sunday (1 p.m.).

A Look at the Aztecs
The San Diego State men's soccer team begins its 2009 season Tuesday on the heels of another top-tier finish in the Pac-10. The Aztecs return eight starters, including their top five point scorers and seven of their eight top offensive performers. In addition, SDSU welcomes the 22nd-best recruiting class, according to the College Soccer News website.

Junior Raymundo Reza (Denver, Colo.) returns to The Mesa after recording one of the best offensive seasons in program history a year ago. Reza, who played mainly in the backline during his freshman campaign in 2007, finished the season with eight goals and four assists for 20 points, the most by an Aztec since Aaron Susi recorded 21 points in 1996. Junior Evan Toft (Aurora, Colo.) earned second-team all-Pac-10 accolades for the second year in a row after leading the squad with six assists, while contributing three goals and 12 points as well. Redshirt senior Matt McManus (Santa Clarita, Calif.) (five goals, one assist), redshirt senior Jamel Wallace (San Diego, Calif./Oceanside HS) (three goals, one assist) and junior Khadim Diouf (Dakar, Senegal) (three goals) also should figure in the scoring for SDSU.

The defense will once again be led by College Soccer News preseason All-American Nick Cardenas (Thornton, Colo.). A senior, Cardenas became the first Aztec to be named to three straight NSCAA/adidas all-Far West teams since Kyle Whittemore (1985-88) when he was picked as a second-team selection in December. Redshirt senior Steve Beitashour (San Jose, Calif.) (27 career starts), sophomore Daniel Steres (Calabasas, Calif.) (three goals, two assists) and redshirt sophomore Justin Davies (San Diego, Calif./Brooks School (Mass.)) (17 games) will also see extensive time in the backline.

Redshirt junior Brad Byrns (Alamo, Calif.) (7-1-3 in two seasons) and redshirt sophomore R.J. Smith (San Diego, Calif./UC Davis) (three games, two starts in 2008) lead the goalkeepers.

San Diego State looked good in the preseason, going 2-0 in exhibition contests. SDSU defeated UC San Diego, 3-0, at SDSU Sports Deck on Aug. 22 and knocked off 2008 NCAA tournament participant Cal Poly, 1-0, in San Luis Obispo on Aug. 26. Dating back to the beginning of the spring season, the Aztecs are 9-0-2 with an impressive nine shutouts in exhibition contests. San Diego State will look to carry that momentum into its 18-match season, which includes four former national champions and seven games against 2008 NCAA tournament teams.

Scouting the Lions
Loyola Marymount will also be playing its season opener on Tuesday. The Lions, return eight starters and 17 letterwinners from last year's squad that went 7-8-5 and finished fifth in the West Coast Conference at 5-6-1. LMU picked up a first-place vote in the WCC preseason poll and is picked to finish in a tie for third with Gonzaga. Junior forward Rafael Baca and sophomore defender Roger Downes were each selected to the preseason all-conference team.

Baca led the team in scoring a year ago with 11 points on five goals and one assist. Sophomore Arthur Jozkowicz (three goals, two assists) and classmate Logan McDaniel (two goals, three assists) are the other top returning scorers. Redshirt senior Patrick Sampson (7-5-4, 0.87 GAA) and redshirt sophomore Jack McCormack (0-3-1, 2.54 GAA) each split time in net a year ago.

Tuesday will be the 19th all-time meeting between the two schools with SDSU owning a 12-5-1 advantage. The Lions, however, won the last match between the two schools by a 2-0 margin on Nov. 5, 2003, in Los Angeles, Calif.

A Glance at the Toreros
Like SDSU and LMU, San Diego is opening its season Tuesday with a match at home against Cal State Northridge. The Toreros return nine starters and 19 letterwinners from last year's squad, which went 6-10-4 overall and 6-5-1 to finish fourth in the WCC. USD was picked to finish fifth in the WCC as senior Ryan Peterman earned preseason all-WCC accolades.

San Diego returns its top three point scorers in seniors Andrew Feld (17 points: seven goals, three assists), JT Howlan (11 points: four goals, three assists) and Kyle Ochoa (eight points: four goals). In addition, redshirt senior Kelin Briones returns to mind the net after going 6-7-2 with a 1.24 goals against average a year ago.

Sunday's meeting will be the 17th time the two schools have met, with the Aztecs gaining the upperhand in the series, 10-4-2. The two programs last met on Oct. 24, 2005 (San Diego State's first season in the Pac-10) where the Aztecs walked away as 1-0 victors at Torero Stadium. Current SDSU redshirt seniors Jamel Wallace (52 minutes) and Kevin Werbner (56 minutes) each played in that game.

Aztecs Picked to Finish Fifth in Pac-10.....Again
Despite returning eight starters from last season, including six all-conference selections, the San Diego State men's soccer team has been picked to finish fifth in the Pac-10 Conference in the preseason poll voted on by the league's coaches on Aug. 13.

SDSU picked up nine points, three behind fourth-place Washington (12). California is predicted to win the regular season title with 24 points, including four first-place votes, while UCLA grabbed the other two first-place votes and is picked to finish second with 22 points. Stanford is third with 15 points, followed by the Huskies (12), the Aztecs (9) and Oregon State (8).

San Diego State, which has never been picked higher than fourth in its five preseason polls, has finished the season better than each of its predicted finishes. In its inaugural Pac-10 season in 2005, SDSU was picked sixth, yet managed a fourth-place finish. The Aztecs finished second in each of their next two seasons despite being picked fourth and fifth, respectively, in the preseason poll. Last year, San Diego State was picked fifth but finished third in league play.

Aztec Men's Soccer Recruiting Class Ranked No. 22 in the Nation
San Diego State's 2009 men's soccer recruiting class has been ranked as the 22nd-best in America by College Soccer News. It is the third top-25 class by SDSU in the past four years and fourth top-40 recruiting class over the past five campaigns.

The accolades of the five-player group include, but are not limited to, an under-17, 18 and 20 U.S. national team starter, numerous high school All-Americans, multiple starters on ODP teams, a nationally-ranked goalkeeper and one of the top defenders from the state of Texas.

On the website, the Aztecs are one spot behind perennial power Indiana (21st) and ahead of South Carolina (23rd), Harvard (24th) and Santa Clara (25th). Other schools behind San Diego State include Big East members St. John's (26th), Connecticut (27th) and Georgetown (28th), Big West programs Cal Poly (33rd) and UC Irvine (38th), and SEC power Clemson (35th).

Cardenas Named to College Soccer News Preseason All-America Team
San Diego State's Nick Cardenas (Thornton, Colo./Horizon HS) was named a preseason All-American by College Soccer News in early July. A senior, Cardenas was picked as a third-team selection by the website after being a third-team member in 2007 as well.

A defender, Cardenas has anchored a backline which has posted 18 shutouts over his three-year career. Last season, Cardenas tallied a career-high four assists while leading the team in minutes played (1,646).

A member of the 2008 preseason M.A.C. Hermann Award Watch List, Cardenas became the first Aztec to be named to three straight NSCAA/adidas all-Far West teams since Kyle Whittemore (1985-88) when he was picked as a second-team selection in December. He also garnered all-Pac-10 Conference accolades for the third consecutive year.

A 2006 U.S. U-20 National Team Camp call-up, Cardenas has twice been named a national player of the week (Sept. 17, 2007 by Top Drawer Soccer and Nov. 1, 2006 by NSCAA/adidas). In 2006, Cardenas was picked as the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, as well as a College Soccer News All-Freshman and a Top Drawer Soccer All-Rookie first-team selection.

Altamirano Named One of 100 Freshmen to Keep an Eye On
San Diego State men's soccer incoming player Jose Altamirano (San Diego/Southwest HS) recently has been picked by College Soccer News as one of the 100 Freshmen From Coast To Coast To Keep An Eye On. Current Aztecs who have previously been named to the preseason list include seniors Daniel Ortega (San Diego/Eastlake HS) and Evan Toft (Aurora, Colo./Grandview HS), and redshirt sophomore Gemechu Abraham (Beaverton, Ore./Beaverton HS).

Altamirano (5-7, 135) comes to The Mesa as the most heralded recruit in recent history. Altamirano is a member of three U.S. national team age groups (U-20, U-18, U-17) and is a three-time NSCAA Youth All-American (2006-08). Altamirano, who ESPNRISE.com ranks as the third-best prospect in the country and Top Drawer Soccer.com rates as the fifth, also garnered All-America accolades from EA Sports, Parade Magazine and ESPNRISE.com after the 2008 campaign. Additionally, Altamirano was picked as the CIF Player of the Year and San Diego County's Player of the Year.

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