This Week in Vulcan Men's Soccer
Record: 3-10 (2-6 PWC)

Three-Match Homestand Puts Wrap on 2019 Season                
Monday, Nov. 11 vs. Holy Names (4-9-2 / 1-5-2 PWC), Hilo, 7 pm
Thursday, Nov. 14 vs. Academy of Art (1-12-1 / 0-7-1 PWC), Hilo, 7 pm
Saturday, Nov. 16 vs. Chaminade (6-6 / 4-4 PWC), Hilo, 3 pm

And, That's a Wrap: After a long four-match road trip to southern California, the Vulcan men's soccer team will put the final touches on the 2019 season with three matches at the UHH Soccer Field (campus). The Vulcans host Holy Names (Monday), Academy of Art (Thursday) and Chaminade on Saturday.
 
Senior Salute: On Saturday, after the match with Chaminade, the Vulcan family will salute its six seniors who will have played their final collegiate matches. That group of six--Brandon Baca, Bryan Gonzalez, Pedro Werneck, Robert George, Selvin Sandoval and Jorge Martinez.

Coach Paul Says: "The team has improved steadily throughout the season, and at moments we have played very close to our potential.  For example, I thought for the majority of the APU game along with the PLNU and CUI matches, we were very good.  Playing those teams that closely, gives you belief, but it can also have a negative effect.  I think we are a little frustrated at this point, because we know we can play with the best teams, yet haven't been able to get the results we wanted.  The reality is that we are a developing program that is only starting to see its potential.  We must be cautious not to look at opportunities lost, but rather to look forward to things that we can still attain." 

Murder's Row: On this recent SoCal trip, the Vulcans played four of the top five teams in the Pacific West Conference standings--including the No. 1 ranked team in the country (Azusa Pacific). UH Hilo opened the trip with a 2-1 win over Biola, handing the Eagles their first conference loss of the season. Just two nights later, they gave PacWest leader and No. 1 nationally ranked Azusa Pacific all they could handle before falling 3-2 in overtime. The Vulcans then ran out of gas against two more top conference squads in Point Loma and Concordia, falling to both 3-0. In both matches, the Sea Lions and Eagles broke 0-0 halftime ties with three second half goals to pull away for the victory.

Underdogs on the Prowl: In the Vulcan win over Biola, UHH scored twice in the final 20 minutes of play to stun the host Eagles. Jorge Martinez scored the equalizer and Robert George put in the game-winner with just under two minutes to play....Against the Cougars, goalkeeper Michale Harre saved 14 APU shots to keep the Vulcans within upset distance. Martinez scored in the match as well.  

Goal Work: The Vulcans have scored 14 goals this season, off the foot or head of nine different players. Jorge Martinez leads the way with four, while Robert George and Pedro Werneck have two each. Henry Castilho has a pair of assists to lead the team in that category, while Kalei Tolentino-Perry has 41 shots, 17 of them on goal to pace the squad in that area.

School Record: While the Vulcans didn't quite make the headline they wanted with the narrow 3-2 loss to Azusa Pacific, a piece of that match will forever be in the UH Hilo men's soccer record books. Goalkeeper Michael Harre's 14 saves is a new single-match school record, topping the previous high of 12 set by Nick Williams in 2018 against St. Martin's. Harre, a junior transfer, leads the PacWest with 74 saves and a 5.69 average per match. He ranks 22nd in NCAA Division II stats for saves. He is 20 saves away from tying Williams' UHH record of 94 saves in a single season. 

Hawk Headlines: The Vulcans will open the homestand against Holy Names, who wraps up their season with three matches on the islands. The Hawks are coming off a pair of 3-2 losses to Fresno Pacific and Notre Dame de Namur. Prior to that was their hallmark match of the year, a 4-0 win over Academy of Art. Despite their 1-5-2 PacWest mark, the Hawks have been a handfull for a number of teams, including Point Loma and Biola--both of whom they tied. Josiah Romero is one of the top scorers in the PacWest, ranking fifth in goals scored with nine. The Hawks won the match in Oakland last year versus the Vulcans, and the all-time series is tied, 3-3-1.

Urban Knight Noise: Academy of Art will play their final match of the season in Hilo, after first playing at Chaminade and Hawaii Pacific. They will be looking for their first conference victory of the year on Oahu, taking a 0-7-1 record to Honolulu. Nonetheless, they tied one of the better teams in the PacWest in Biola (0-0), but overall have had trouble scoring goals this season--scoring just five while giving up 38. UH Hilo won last year's match between the two schools in San Francisco (1-0), and the all-time series is tied, 6-6.

Chaminade Clippings: The Silverswords have had a solid season and would like nothing more to end up over .500, sitting at 6-6 heading into final matches with Holy Names, Academy of Art and UHH. The Silverswords hits a high note on Oct. 14 when they were 5-2 after a win over Fresno Pacific. But they have since dropped four of their last five matches. One of their losses earlier in the year was a non-conference setback to the Vulcans, 3-2. Colin Roemer leads Chaminade with seven goals on the season. With the win earlier this season, UH Hilo leads the all-time series, 19-6-4.

Around the PacWest: First-place Azusa Pacific is still the No. 1 ranked team in the country, the first for the Cougars in school history at the NCAA Division II level. They are 8-0 in the PacWest and 15-0 overall heading into a Nov. 9 match at Fresno Pacific.  Point Loma is next in the PWC standings at 7-1-1, followed by Concordia (5-2) and Dominican (5-3). The Penguins have won six matches in a row. The Vulcans are currently tenth (2-6) in the 12-team field. APU is of course also ranked No. 1 in the official Super Region IX poll, followed by Cal State LA, who is ranked fourth nationally (13-0-1). Here is the rest of top 12….(3) St. Mary's TX 12-2-2, (4) Cal State San Bernardino 10-2-3, (5) Western Washington 10-3-1, (6) Midwestern State TX 11-4-0, (7) Texas A&M International 11-4-1, (8) Cal Poly Pomona 10-4-2, (9) UC San Diego 12-4, (10) Chico State 10-4, (11) Eastern New Mexico 10-5-1, (12) Colorado School of Mines 12-3-3.

Last Year: The Vulcans went 4-12 overall and 3-8 in the Pacific West Conference. They won their season opener against nationally ranked Western Washington and upset Concordia late in the season for their signature wins under first-year coach Paul Regrutto.

The Coach: Paul Regrutto returned to take the reins of the program in 2018, after five successful seasons as the head women's coach at Colorado State-Pueblo. Regrutto was the RMAC Coach of the Year in 2016 after leading the Thunderwolves to their first NCAA tournament appearance. Back in 2006, the Colorado native was UH Hilo's first ever men's soccer coach, leading the squad to a 5-9-1 record.