Titans Get NCAA Soccer Berth

Cal State Fullerton was selected Monday for an at-large berth in the NCAA Division I men’s soccer playoffs, and the Titans will be tested quickly in their first-round game Saturday night at Stanford.

The Cardinal (16-2-1) was seeded third in the 32-team field behind North Carolina (19-2) and No. 2 Clemson (13-3-2).

“We got one of the toughest draws we could have gotten, but you have to beat good teams if you’re going to win it,” Titan Coach Al Mistri said. “This is a tough field, but we’re just happy to be back in the tournament.”

Fullerton (15-5-1) was denied one of the 16 at-large playoff spots last season despite a 14-5 record.

The Titans will be making their seventh appearance in the Division I playoffs. Fullerton reached the final four in 1993, losing to South Carolina in the semifinals.

UCLA (12-6) also earned an at-large bid and will play Sunday at fourth-seeded San Diego (15-1-2).

Fullerton played six teams in the field this season, beating UCLA and Southern Methodist and losing to Clemson, Furman, Washington and eighth-seeded San Jose State. Fullerton lost to San Jose (20-0-1) in the final of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament Sunday, 3-2.

Mistri thinks that loss probably hurt Fullerton’s chances of hosting a first-round game. “I’d prefer to be playing at home, but we won all three games on the road the year we went to the final four,” Mistri said.

The winner of the Fullerton-Stanford game will play the winner of the game between Illinois Chicago and Bradley in the second round the following weekend.