Big West Men's Soccer Tournament Slots Up for Grabs in Final Week

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Sunghyun Kim and Cal State Northridge are one of three teams vying for the final spot in the 2009 Big West Men's Soccer Tournament.

The final week of regular season men's soccer action has Big West Tournament slots up for grabs and plenty of scenarios possible. The six matches this week will decide the matchups and locations of the second annual league tourney, with the winner claiming the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

NOTEWORTHY

Vom Steeg Stands Alone in Big West Lore
Now in the 11th year at the helm of his alma mater, UC Santa Barbara head coach Tim Vom Steeg has achieved a major Big West milestone this season. Thanks to the Gauchos’ 1-0 win over Cal Poly on October 7, Vom Steeg is now the all-time winningest coach in Big West lore, passing former Fresno State manager Jose Elgorriaga’s total of 126 wins. Vom Steeg is already the career leader in league-only triumphs, posting his 60th career win against Big West foes with the Gauchos' victory against UC Irvine on September 27. He is the lone coach in Big West history to post 60+ wins in conference play and 120+ overall wins during league membership.

UC Santa Barbara On the Verge of #1 Seed
The Big West Tournament is a week away, but the top seed in the 2009 Big West Tournament is on the verge of being clinched as UC Santa Barbara needs a point in its next two matches for the top overall position. Cal Poly is the lone club that can catch UCSB, but needs two Gaucho losses and two UC Irvine losses to get a chance via tiebreaker. The #1 slot would be the first for UC Santa Barbara, coming on the heels of a #2 seed a year ago in the inaugural tourney.

UCSB, CP, UCI In...One Spot up for Grabs
The 2009 Big West Tournament field is almost set as UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly and UC Irvine have secured spots in the second edition of the annual tourney. Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Northridge and UC Davis all have shots at the fourth position and Wednesday's matchups will go a long way toward determining who the fourth participant will be. The three teams that have clinched all made the inaugural tournament a year ago, while the fourth slot was occupied by UCD.

Halloween Treat for CSUN
Cal State Northridge had its offensive struggles in the month of October, but the Halloween holiday was a treat for the Matadors as they broke their scoring drought. Coming into the October 31 game against UC Riverside, CSUN had scored just three goals in its previous seven outings in the month. The offense then exploded for a season-high four goals in the match against UCR, the most goals since a six goal showing against Detroit-Mercy on August 31, 2007, the season-opening match for the Matadors that season. In fact, the two best offensive showings for Cal State Northridge in 2009 have been against UC Riverside as CSUN scored thrice against the Highlanders in a win on September 30.

Hat Trick for UCI's Walker
It might seem like déjà vu, but another Big West player picked up a hat trick last week. The league's third three-goal game of the season was picked up by UC Irvine's Amani Walker, giving him a league-high nine goals on the season. The hat trick is the 23rd in league history and ties 2009 with 1984 for the second-most hat tricks in one season in Big West history. One more would tie '09 with 2005 for the most in conference lore.

Getting Pipped Part II
Earlier in the season, Cal State Northridge had a Wally Pipp situtation when Brandon Ibarra went down with an injury only to see Michael Abalos excel in the starting 'keeper role. Well another Pipp situation is brewing at UC Irvine as 2008 Co-Freshman of the Year and Big West Tournament MVP Andrew Fontein went down only to see Victor Chinchilla establish himself as a top-flight goalkeeper. Chinchilla is 6-3 since taking over between the pipes, posting a 1.08 goals against average, 35 saves, one shutout and allowing just 10 goals. He has played some stellar games, including five saves on the road against New Mexico in a win, six stops in a key road win against Cal State Fullerton and holding the highpowered UC Santa Barbara attack to just two goals in his 192:56 of game time against the club.

SIms Peppers the Goal like No Other
Opposing teams have to account for a multitude of stars in the Big West, but none sprays the goal with shots as regularly as Cal State Northridge's Cameron Sims. He leads the conference in shots with 68, 35 of which have come in the Matadors' eight conference games. With 4-5 possible games to go in the '09 season, Sims has a good chance to crack the top five in single-season shots in Big West history.

The Climb Back to .500
Cal Poly's 2-6 hole could have submarined its season, but the club has rallied since with a 6-3-1 mark. The club was at the .500 mark for a few days after its October 24 win over UC Riverside, but fell back under the line with a loss to UC Davis in its next outing. Nevertheless, the turnaround by the Mustangs has been impressive as they are currently second in the Big West and allowed just eight goals in that 10-match run.

UCR Looks for First Conference Win
UC Riverside is still seeking its first Big West win of the 2009 season and is down to two chances to make it happen. Only one team has ever gone winless in conference play, the Highlanders of 2005. That does come with an asterisk though as UCR had to forfeit all of its conference matches due to the use of an ineligible player.

Big West Live to Twitter
The Big West Conference is excited to bring Big West Live to Twitter, a Twitter feed designed to give fans an in-the-stands view of select Big West Events.  Bringing near-instantaneous photos, commentary, and updates, Big West Live is the first feed of its kind.  Moving beyond the scores and stats, Big West Live delivers the “color” of Big West events.