FULLERTON, Calif. – The No. 14 FGCU men's soccer team (3-2-1) fell to No. 23 Cal State Fullerton (6-0-0) by a final of 2-0, Sunday night at Titan Stadium.

"I'm really proud of our guys tonight. Despite making a couple of key mistakes, our team rose to the occasion and fought down a man against a top team for 65 minutes," said head coach Jesse Cormier. "Besides the result, we were in most aspects the better team while dealing with adversity in tonight's challenge that has already brought us closer. The heart and character in this team was revealed throughout the game and when we eliminate mistakes, we can defeat anyone in the country on any given day. It's now time to focus on UCF Wednesday night."

It was a chess match through the first twenty minutes of play as Cal State Fullerton then struck in the 23rd minute off a penalty kick. A foul inside the six-yard box, Ernest Mitchell (Montclair, N.J./Marist) was shown a straight red card as the Eagles played with 10 men the rest of the way. The Green and Blue offense capped off the first stanza with one shot, coming off the right boot of Ryan Medilah (Paris, France/San Jacinto). Keeper Gustavo Vasconcelos (Recife, Brazil/Colegio GGE) secured a pair of saves from the seven shots CSF fired.

In the second stanza, Ivan Rosales (Houston, Texas/San Jacinto) and Jahan Rajaee (Gainesville, Fla./F.W. Buchholz HS) tested the CSF keeper in the 53rd and 64th minute, but were denied by two diving saves. The Titans soon made it a 2-0 advantage in 72nd minute as Mario Gomez struck with a one on one chance inside the penalty box.

Down the stretch, the Eagles fired off six shots, two of which came on frame by Rajaee (81st) and Kareem Riley (Couva, Trinidad & Tobago/Presentation College San Fernando) (82nd).  

Vasconcelos gathered two saves in the final half as he moves to 3-2-1 overall between the posts. On offense, FGCU registered nine shots, five on frame and tied CSF in corner kicks, 4-4. Medilah led the Eagles in shots with three (one on frame).

Up Next
No. 14 FGCU returns home Wednesday (Sept. 18) night at 7 p.m. to face in-state rival No. 16 UCF (3-1-1).

Fall Sports Single-Game, Season and Group Tickets On Sale
Single game tickets for volleyball, men's soccer and women's soccer are on sale now. Prices are $7 for adults and $5 for military/veterans (with ID) and youth (age 15 and under).

Season tickets (entry to each home game) are $55 for volleyball and women's soccer and $40 for men's soccer. Group tickets are $7 for groups of 15 or more and will include reserved seats, group recognition, a group activity and choice of FGCU gear or food. Fall Frequent Flyer passes, which includes a total of 30 entries to all three sports, are just $99.

For all inquiries, you can visit FGCUtickets.com, call 239-590-7145 or stop by the ticket office, which is open daily Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and one hour prior to all home events.

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the-minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU men's soccer program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_MSoccer, Instagram @FGCU_MSoccer, Facebook /FGCUMSoccer, and YouTube /FGCUAthletics.

HEAD COACH JESSE CORMIER
Jesse Cormier completed his second as head coach of the FGCU men's soccer program after being hired in January of 2017 to become just the 2nd head coach in program history. Cormier has guided FGCU to a 20-13-6 (.590) record overall, including a 9-2-2 mark (.773) in ASUN play. The Eagles have reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for eight-straight seasons (every year of eligibility), as Cormier has coached 16 all-conference selections since his arrival (program-record 10 in 2017). Cormier was the head coach at his alma mater the University of Vermont for the previous 13 seasons. He won 14 games with the Catamounts in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round. During his time with Vermont, Cormier guided the program to the America East Tournament in 12 of 13 seasons, making five title game appearances, winning two tournament crowns, claiming a regular-season championship and advancing to three NCAA tournaments, including a pair of Second Round appearances. Cormier holds an overall 134-102-53 (.555) record as a head coach in his fourteen plus seasons at the helm.

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.

ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 78 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 11+ seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just seven+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including both men's soccer, women's soccer, and women's basketball again in 2018-19. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in spring 2018 and have outpaced their institution's undergraduate student body GPA each of the past 20 semesters. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl in 2017.