UNLV’S MEN’S SOCCER RECEIVES FIRST NATIONAL TOP-25 RANKING SINCE 1992
Rebels are No. 23 in this week’s TopDrawerSoccer.com Poll
Thanks to its 5-0-1 start to the season which includes last week’s 1-0 upset of No. 14 UMBC, the UNLV men’s soccer team has made its first appearance in a national top-25 poll since 1992, coming in at No. 23 in this week’s TopDrawerSoccer.com Top 25 Poll.
The Rebels began the year with five straight victories, before having to settle for a 0-0 double-overtime tie with Detroit on Sunday afternoon. Despite that draw, UNLV had done enough to earn its first ranking in a top 25 poll since Sept. 22, 1992, when it was 12th in the then ISAA (now NSCAA) poll. UNLV would drop out the next week, and has been absent from the national rankings until Monday.
UNLV’s win over the 14th-ranked Retrievers on Sept. 12 was the first for the team over a ranked opponent since Sept. 2, 2009. They were also the highest-ranked victory for the Rebels since a 6-1 win over No. 5 Connecticut on Sept. 23, 2001.
The Rebels are currently riding a four-game shutout streak, the longest such streak since 1985, and are 12th in the nation in team shutout percentage. UNLV’s offense meanwhile ranks fourth in total goals (15) and sixth in total assists (40) through the first three weeks of the season. Senior forward Salvador Bernal is third in the nation in total goals with six, and fourth in total points with 13.
The Rebels will have one game this week, a Saturday road contest at Gonzaga at 1 pm in Spokane, Wash.