SEASON OPENER
at Stanislaus State
Thursday, Sept. 1 •  7 p.m.
Warrior Stadium • Turlock, Calif.
Live Stats •  Video
 
HOME OPENER
vs. Cal State Monterey Bay
Saturday, Sept. 3 •  7 p.m.
Ramirez Field • Fresno, Calif.
Live Stats

SCHEDULE NOTES
After this week, the Blue and Orange hit the road again for an exhibition with NCAA Division I Cal Poly on Sept. 11 before squaring off with 2015 Division II runner-up Cal Poly Pomona on the 13th in Pomona.
 
PacWest play commences on Sept. 22, when the Sunbirds return home for a pair of back-to-back battles against Chaminade and BYU-Hawaii. A road bout with Notre Dame de Namur precedes a rematch of last season's conference championship, as FPU heads to St. George, Utah to take on Dixie State on the first day of October.
 
Sonoma State makes the journey to Fresno on Oct. 5, and the Sunbirds follow with visiting contests against Dominican, Azusa Pacific and Point Loma. Academy of Art and Holy Names come calling on Oct. 19 and 22, respectively, before the 'Birds make their final road trip of the season with a pair of league matches against California Baptist and Concordia.
 
FPU hosts Hawaii Hilo on Nov. 3 and will celebrate Senior Day on Nov. 5 against Hawaii Pacific to wrap up the regular season.
 
PACWEST PRESEASON POLL
Fresno Pacific was picked first in the PacWest Preseason Coaches' Poll after winning the league last season.

 

PACWEST MEN'S SOCCER POLL
1.	Fresno Pacific (8)	188
2.	Point Loma	163
3.	Hawai'i Pacific (2)	154
4.	Notre Dame de Namur (1)	146
5.	Azusa Pacific	131
6.	California Baptist (1)	128
7.	Dixie State (1)	117
8.	BYU-Hawaii (1)	102
9.	Concordia	96
10.	Academy of Art	92
11.	Dominican	51
12.	Hawai'i Hilo	41
13.	Holy Names	36
14.	Chaminade	22

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



ROSTER NOTES
The Sunbirds bring back 18 returners from last season, including PacWest Preseason Player of the Year Jorge Chedraui (13 goals, two assists in 2015). Seniors Joey Belzil (10 goals, two game winners) and Benjamin Cowdrill (three goals, five assists) joined Chedraui on the Preseason All-Conference Team. FPU saw key departures from the 2015 season in various positions, as senior goalkeeper Andrew Luis (62 saves, 19 goals allowed), PacWest Player of the Year Renato Bustamante (9 goals, 13 assists), and defensive leader Dallas Whitlow all graduated in May.

ABOUT THE WARRIORS
Stanislaus State, under the direction of head coach Dana Taylor, are coming off a 15-4-3 season that ended in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the hands of Cal State LA. After the departures of Daniel Kuczysnki and Jose Ramirez (totaled 22 goals and 11 assists in 2015), the Warriors will rely largely on senior Manny Villegas (six goals, four assists) and sophomore Ryan Chaney (six goals, two assists) to lead the offensive attack. Stanislaus State also saw both of last season's goalkeepers graduate after starter Russ Klabough saved four times as many shots as he allowed goals.
 
SERIES HISTORY: FPU VS STANISLAUS STATE
The Sunbirds claim a 12-3-1 advantage in the all-time series, but the Warriors have claimed each of the last three meetings. FPU has not defeated Stanislaus State since 2007 and hasn't won in Turlock since the previous season.
 
ABOUT THE OTTERS
Cal State Monterey Bay, under the direction of Rob Cummings, is coming off an 8-8 season and a tenth place finish in the California Collegiate Athletic Conference. Returning are both the team's leading scorers, as seniors Alejandro Garcia and Emmanuel Corona each tallied four goals last season and are likely to provide the Otters with a formidable front attack.
 
SERIES HISTORY: FPU VS CAL STATE MONTEREY BAY
The Sunbirds claim a 4-1-0 record in the all-time series, with the Otters' lone win coming in Fresno in 2002. FPU has won the last four meetings by outscoring Monterey Bay 14-5, and Chedraui and Dylan Rusconi have teamed up for five goals in the last two seasons against the Otters.
 
HEAD COACH JAIME RAMIREZ
In 25 seasons, Ramirez has coached the Sunbird men to a 300-150-31 record that includes a pair Pacific West Conference Championships (2013, 2015), eight Golden State Athletic Conference Championships (1991, 92, 98, 99, 2002, 03, 05, 11), four Region Championships (1999, 2003, 2007, 2012) and five NAIA National Championship Tournament appearances (1999, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009). His 300 wins are the most in FPU men's soccer history.

As a player, his career records for most goals scored (54) and most points scored (134) stood for nearly twenty years. They were finally surpassed in 1999 by striker Edgardo Contreras (61, 141). Ramirez was a four-time Fresno Pacific MVP, four-time NAIA All-District Three award winner and three-time NAIA All-America honoree. As a senior in the 1980 campaign, he led the (then) Vikings to the school's first NAIA District 3 championship.

Ramirez played one season (1982) for the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League, and then returned to Fresno to complete his education. He played 20 seasons in the San Joaquin Soccer League, the last seven with SC San Marcos. He helped San Marcos to the state semifinals in 1996 before retiring in 1997.

In his first season as head coach, Ramirez guided the Sunbird men to an impressive 15-2-1 record and was honored by his peers as the NAIA District 3 and All-Far West Coach of the Year. He has gone on to receive numerous coaching honors, most recently the PacWest Coach of the Year distinction in 2013.

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