IRVINE, Calif. – In less than two weeks, the regular season gets underway for the Concordia University Irvine men's soccer team.
The team is already motivated to get off to a good start under new CUI head coach
Joshua Glover with multiple September matches at home against nationally-ranked CCAA opponents.
Perhaps adding some fuel to the fire is the PacWest Conference Preseason Poll which came out on Tuesday. Coaches across the league voted Point Loma as the favorite and slotted CUI in at No. 8 out of 13 teams.
The Golden Eagles are led by leading returning scorer
Miguel Arroyo. The senior was a D2CCA Second Team All-Region and First Team All-PacWest selection after leading CUI in a handful of offensive categories. He tallied 18 points after scoring six goals and dishing out six assists in the 2024 campaign.
Veteran defensemen
Ryan Smith,
Adrian Jarquin and
Brandon Schalliol are also now seniors along the back line and joined by key returners
Domenyk Jara and
Jonathan Moreno in the midfield. SAAC Vice President
Kevin Sanchez is another member of the Servite High School pipeline, and redshirt sophomore
Dylan Graham is back for his second season on the pitch after tallying four goals last year.
CLICK HERE to read more about new CUI head coach Josh Glover.
15 new faces join the squad and are set to make their debuts in the coming days. It's a combination of six transfers and nine freshmen who can help the Golden Eagles in a variety of ways.
The transfers are primarily coming from Southern California schools:
Andy Jun (F, Jr., Saddleback College),
Jad Othman (D, Golden West College),
George Peterson (F, Soph, Hope International),
Hugo Viramontes (D, Jr., Irvine Valley College) and
Griffin Welch (GK, Jr. Cerritos College) all have regional ties while
Jordan Toy joins the Green and Gold from UT Tyler as a junior forward.
The freshmen class also has a lot of ties to Orange County. That group includes
CJ Garcia (M, Mater Dei HS),
Jayden Gins (F, La Jolla HS),
Gianluca Guimaraes (Capistrano Valley HS),
Rowan Johnson (GK, Bend HS),
Kaden Kirsch (D, JSerra HS),
Bryan Maldonado (F, Narbonne HS),
Nathan Nava (M, LA Galaxy Academy),
Aldo Ramirez (D, Mayfair HS) and
Angel Reyes (M, JSerra HS).
Last season, CUI won six matches with statement wins at Vanguard and against nationally-ranked Cal State San Bernardino.
The Golden Eagles are set to hold their home opener against No. 24 Cal State Dominguez on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 6:30 p.m. under the lights.
CLICK HERE for the full CUI men's soccer schedule
CLICK HERE for the full PacWest Preseason Poll & Men's Soccer Preview
