Matadors Travel to UC Irvine to take on Anteaters Wednesday

NORTHRIDGE, Calif --- CSUN men's soccer (6-3-4) will hit the road once again as the Matadors will take on the UC Irvine Anteaters Wednesday night at Anteater stadium. That matchup is set to begin with a 6:00 p.m. kickoff.

LAST TIME OUT
CSUN played to a tie with Sacramento State on Wednesday and fell to UC Davis on Saturday.

In Wednesday's game against the Hornets, CSUN played to a 2-2 draw. The Matadors opened the game with a two goal first half lead. Zion Wagoner and Enrique Pineda both found the back of the net.

Wagoner opened the scoring in the sixth minute, burying a penalty kick for his first goal of the season after a handball in the box by Sac State. The go-ahead goal by the senior from Denver, Colorado was his first since Oct.12, 2024 at CSU Bakersfield.

The Matadors doubled their lead just before halftime when Ian Boras sent a cross from the left side that found Enrique Pineda, who rose above the defense and headed the ball into an open net in the 41st minute.

The Hornets finally broke through in the 66th minute when Hiroshi Yang's cross slipped through the box and found Eli Reyneveld, who finished from the top of the box to cut the deficit in half. Sacramento State equalized in the 87th minute.

On Saturday night, CSUN fell 1-0 to UC Davis. The Aggies broke a scoreless deadlock in the 58th minute when Gabriel Haggerty converted a right-footed shot to the bottom right corner off a setup from Declan Horio. It was the lone goal of the night and stood as the game-winner.

Drucks recorded six saves for the Matadors, including key stops on early efforts from Zack Lillington and Cason Goodman to keep the match level through halftime.

Luke Lawrence and Zion Wagoner each took two shots for CSUN, while Agurcia, Sosa and Seydou Diop led the attack with three apiece. The Matadors held a 4-0 advantage in corner kicks during the second half but couldn't capitalize.

GOALS BEING SPREAD AROUND
Through the 2025 campaign, scoring has been balanced across the Matador roster. Seven different players have found the back of the net, with Enrique Pineda leading the way with three goals on the year. Jorge Solorzano has two goals as well, with Eyifehn Forfor, Daniel Garcia, Sebastian Fuentes and Zack Harris each having one. Harris also leads the team in the shots on goal category, as he has eight.

OUR GOALKEEPER IS AMONG THE BEST
Goalkeeper Dorian Drucks has already matched a milestone not achieved since 2022. He has been in goal for seven shutouts, the most by a CSUN goalkeeper since that season. In 2022, Cooper Wenzel reached seven shutouts in 19 games — Drucks accomplished the feat in just nine.

The junior from Essen, Germany, ranks fourth nationally in shutouts.

SCOUTING UC IRVINE
The Anteaters are currently 5-3-5 with four ties in Big West play. UC Irvine is known for its defense. UCI's defense has faced 10 less shots on goal than any other Big West school at 2.84 with the second-best GAA (0.92). The 'Eaters enter the week on four straight draws, a program record. The record for draws in a season for UCI is 6, a feat accomplished in 2001, and 2008.

CSUN is facing UCI on the road, and currently the Anteaters are undefeated at home, with a record of 5-0-3. CSUN has to be careful in allowing the first goal as well, as UCI is currently undefeated when scoring first to boot.

Earlier in the season, UC Irvine was ranked 19th in the nation, the first time it was ranked since 2019. Misael Gonzalez Lopez leds the team with five goals scored. Agaton Pourshahidi has added three as well. In 13 games behind the net, goalkeeper Joe O'Shaughnessy has 23 saves on the season

SERIES HISTORY:
CSUN is 28-24-6 all time against UC Irvine. The Matadors' last win came in 2023, where CSUN won 1-0 on the road. CSUN had a six game win streak versus the Anteaters stretching from 2016-2019.

Matadors Travel to UC Irvine to take on Anteaters Wednesday

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Players Mentioned

Ian Boras

Dorian Drucks

Eyifehn Forfor

Sebastian Fuentes

Daniel Garcia

Zack Harris

Luke Lawrence

Enrique Pineda

Jorge Solorzano

Zion Wagoner