On the back of an impressive four-match season-opening homestand, the Chico State men's soccer team has risen all the way to No. 5 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/Continental Tire National rankings. Now it's time to find out if the Wildcats can take their show on the road.
 
The Wildcats wrap up the non-conference portion of their schedule at the Lumberjack Invitational, hosted by Humboldt State. They'll face BYU-Hawaii Thursday at 11 a.m. and Holy Names Saturday at 4 p.m. Both matches will be played at College Creek Field in Arcata. BYU-Hawaii enters the weekend 0-2 and Holy Names is 2-2. Both matches will feature streaming stats and video via the Humboldt State athletics website (hsujacks.com).
 
Chico State is 3-0-1, having outscored its opponents 7-1. The Wildcats began the season ranked outside of the Top 25 before rising to No. 16 last week and all the way up to No. 5 this week.
 
They rank second in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) and seventh in the nation with a 0.24 goals-against-average, having allowed only 11 shots on goal thus far. Meanwhile, true freshman Patrick Lee leads the CCAA and ranks second in the nation with four assists and Akwafei Ajeakwa is tied for fourth in the nation with a pair of game-winning goals.
 
The Wildcats blanked Dominican 3-0 to open the season, played to a 1-1 draw with Seattle Pacific (currently ranked 13^th in the nation), and then shutout Academy of Art 2-0 and Saint Martin's 1-0 over the weekend.