WINNING & HONORING HORNET EXCELLENCE

It was the first annual Hornets of Excellence Game honoring past FC soccer greats, and the Hornets did not disappoint beating Orange Coast College 2-1.

It was a home game on Sherbeck Field where FC took care of business landing its first Orange Empire Conference win. The now have a conference record of 1-0-1, while bumping its overall record to 5-3-2. The Pirate loss lands the team at 0-1-1 in the OEC and 2-5-2 overall.

The Hornets scored the first goal of the game in the 20th minute on a solo shot by Hayden Kenny. The Hornets controlled much of the match, until Orange Coast broke through with a goal in the 76th minute when Gabriel Garcia knocked back a penalty kick from 25-yards out in the upper left portion of the net. With time winding down, Fullerton magic was in the air as the team pulled off a game-winning goal with 30-seconds left in the match. Thomas Gomez chipped the ball in from 10-yards out after taking the feed from Hector Guevara. 

FC goalie Steven Martinez had 2 saves in 90 minutes of play.

At halftime, members of the 2018 OEC Championship team, former Hornet Coach Jim Pasquale, former player and current Associate Head Coach Kenny Castellanos, along with former FC standout players, Kevan Rehmani and Christian Wood.

2018 Team Champions – was the first of four OEC titles under Head Coach Greg Aviles & Kenny Castellanos tenure. It had been a 26-year wait for the Hornets to achieve another OEC title, and this team did it in grand fashion for what was at the time a program-best 17-win season. The team also broke the school record for most shutout wins, with 12 shutouts on the year. These Hornets were also a very successful team in the classroom with 14 out of 14 student-athletes transferring to four-year colleges. In attendance for the halftime ceremony were Angel Ponce, Ryutaro Ichihara, Cesar Ortega, Danny Abrego, Marco Polo, AJ Yazid, Anthony Ferrigno, Mike Calderon, Juan Medina, Kevan Rehmani, and CJ Wood.

Jim Pasquale – Head Coach and founder of the Fullerton College men's soccer program. Coach Pasquale first began the Hornet men's team in 1976 with an enthusiastic group of 23 young men. He went on to win two conference titles (1981 and 1992), while helping many of his players move on to the four-year level. Coaching the FC men's team from 1976-1999, Coach Pasquale also founded the Hornet men's volleyball team in the spring of 1977 and women's volleyball team in the fall of 1977. When asked of his former coach & mentor, Tino Younger (FC Player 1983-84) had this to say: "The whole foundation of my defensive principals was based on what I learned at Fullerton College from Coach Pasquale. He has been a tremendous impact on my life and what I carry onto others."

Kenny Castellanos – Currently serving as the associate head coach for the Hornets. Coach Castellanos bleeds Hornet blue and gold not only as a coach but as a former player. As a player, he played a significant role on the 2002 and 2003 FC squads scoring a total of 9 goals with 8 assists. In 2003, he helped his team to the state tournament semi-final game. As a coach, Kenny got his start at Fullerton as an assistant in 2006 and has played a huge role in student-athlete success sending over 100 players on to the four-year level and beyond. Castellanos has helped the Hornets to the playoffs 8 times and won 4 Orange Empire Conference titles and captured 3 CCCAA SoCal Staff of the Year Awards.

Kevan Rehmani – was the star goalie on the 2018 Orange Empire Conference championship team that had 12 shutout wins for the Hornets. Rehmani was named OEC Honorable Mention, nominated for Defensive Player of the year in 2018, and on the Dean's every semester at Fullerton. He went on to play at the University of La Verne where he had 108 saves (69 in 2019 and 39 in 2021), captained the team and earned academic scholarships. He stayed on staff as an assistant coach for a year and is now in his last year of law school.

Christian Wood – was a standout player on the 2018 OEC Championship team. He captained the 2018 squad and led a defense that broke the school record for shutouts (12) and wins (17). Christian earned OEC Conference Defender of the Year, was 1st Team All-Conference, First Team SoCal All-Region, was awarded CCCAA 1st Team All-State honors, and earned the Fullerton College Athletics Male Scholar Athlete of the Year Award. Wood signed a full ride scholarship with Loyola Marymount University where he accounted for 4 assists, started every game and captained the team. He was named All-WCC Honorable Mention, led a defense that finished 11th in the nation his senior season & went on to win the WCC Championship. Christian went on to the MLS, where he joined RNY FC & started 16 games. Christian is currently serving the soccer community as a sports analyst and player agent developing upcoming talent. In 2023, Christian was given the honor of having an athletic award named in his behalf at Fullerton College.

The 2024 Hornet Honorees

Up Next: The Hornets (5-3-2 overall, 1-0-1) will hit the road on Tuesday, October 8th when they take on another conference foe in Santiago Canyon. Game time is at 3:00 pm.

*Photo by Aaliyah Skipper