By Bill Sheehan

A year ago, newcomer Roberto Ordonez was ready to boost the fortunes of Cal State Fullerton's soccer team. But no sooner had the junior transfer arrived on campus when back pain forced him off the pitch.

"A couple days into my second week, my lower back gave out," said Ordonez, who was diagnosed with a muscle tear, likely from overtraining. He received physical therapy and exercises to strengthen his core muscles but was told to take a long break.

"I kept my hopes up, but I wasn't able to play last season," he said. Meanwhile, Fullerton lost its final regular-season game and fell out of the Big West Tournament.

Fast forward a year, and things have dramatically improved for both Ordonez and the Titans.

The midfielder from Texas has a Big West-best 28 points and 10 assists and is second in goals with nine. Nationally, he is tied for first in assists and ranks third in points. And he was named the nation's number 1 player on Top Draw Soccer's Midseason Top 100.

The Titans, 11-4-3 overall, lead the conference with a 5-2-1 record. UC Santa Barbara (9-6-2, 4-2-2) is in second place, trailing by just two points.

The two teams will meet in a regular season-ending showdown at 7 p.m. Saturday at Titan Stadium. A win or tie would secure the Big West Tournament's No. 1 seed for Fullerton. A Santa Barbara win would give the Gauchos the top seed and could drop the Titans as far down as the third seed.

"They all seem to be the most important game of the season, but this one does come down to the regular-season conference championship," said George Kuntz, the Titans' eighth-year head coach.

"We've been a little banged-up in the last couple weeks. But the players are taking a good mental approach as they prepare for the game," said Kuntz. "The key will be how well we execute."

Ordonez is focusing on the game and not the different seeding scenarios. "Obviously, we know we are in the Big West Tournament. But I want to go into the tournament with a winning mentality. I feel like if we win this game, we will go very far in the conference tournament and even in the national tournament."

The 5-foot-11 Ordonez is listed as a midfielder but has been used as a False 9 – a striker who is stationed high up in the pitch but has the freedom to roam around and drop back to receive the ball and disrupt defenders.

"Every so often, we have a player who can turn a game. Roberto is one of those players. His ability to control the ball is better than we thought he could do. His work ethic, creativity and skill levels all make the team better," said Kuntz.

"He is left-footed, but he is extremely good with his right foot too. He reads the game well and has a great awareness of what is around him. Roberto's tactical acumen is a real asset – he puts himself in the right spots where opponents are vulnerable."

Kuntz initially held out hope that Ordonez could play in 2022. But when the severity of his injury became apparent, the team shut him down. "We decided that he needed to rest. And taking time off made the difference."

Ordonez began training again in early February. "I had some tightness at first, but by the end of spring training I felt good," he said.

The 22-year-old has had several memorable moments in his breakout season. His first Fullerton goal came in a 6-1 win against Mercer at a neutral site in Evansville, Indiana.

"It had been so long since my last game – it felt amazing. Getting my first Division 1 goal is something I will always cherish," said Ordonez, who transferred from Western Texas College. "I felt relief as well as excitement. I had all kinds of emotions that I can't explain."

He became a starter in the Titans' fourth game, a 2-0 loss against Seattle. "I didn't know in advance. We got the lineup just before the game. It felt good to be in the starting 11. I had been working toward that for a long time."

In Fullerton's conference opener at CSUN, Ordonez scored a hat trick. His first goal put the Titans ahead, 2-1, and his second gave them a 3-2 lead. In the final 15 minutes, he tied the score 4-4 with his third goal, and teammate Erick Serrano's rebound off a blocked Ordonez free kick gave Fullerton a 5-4 win.

"We knew that we could come back," said Ordonez, who had two assists to go with his three goals. "When we got behind, we kept a positive mindset. We all knew what we wanted, which was to win."

Another highlight occurred when his mother, Monica Nino, and a younger brother, Angel, surprised Ordonez by showing up at Titan Stadium for the UC Davis game. The two traveled from his hometown of Pharr, which is near the Mexican border about 150 miles southwest of Corpus Christi.

Ordonez scored on a penalty kick to give the Titans a 1-0 win. "They caught a flight to California. It felt great for them to be present for my goal and share the joy with me."

Fullerton's tough non-conference schedule, which included a 4-1 win over UCLA and a tie with Washington, has paid dividends, Ordonez said. "We really increased our confidence by playing stronger teams early on. We got to know our level of play and how we could improve, both as a team and individually."

"We have been killing it. We know we can compete against larger universities because our attack is so lethal. And we have a lot of depth. When the starters come out, there is not a lot of change."

Ordonez is one of seven Titans with multiple goals, joined by Sulaiman Bah (seven), Serrano (four), Jorge Quintero (four) Mario Carlos (three), Marci Killeen (two) and Fitz Williams (two). Three others have one.

The Titans laid the groundwork for their success last spring, Kuntz said. "A number of our returnees were playing well. We brought in some excellent guys, and Roberto's return to good health was a key factor."

In fact, he told Brian Robin of the Orange County Register that this is one of Fullerton's best squads ever.

"I told our team this. When you're talking about Fullerton, this is one of the best groups we've had. Overall, I think it's the best group we've ever had collectively. We've had some good teams, but this one has good balance. There's depth at every position and that leads to consistency."

Ordonez spent two years competing for Western Texas College in Snyder, which is 85 miles southeast of Lubbock. He caught the eye of Fullerton assistant coach Irving Garcia during a national community college tournament in Tyler, Texas.

"After watching Roberto play, I knew that he was a special player," said Garcia. "It was my first year as an assistant coach, and I wanted to make sure we got the right player. I talked with different sources, including Rafael Amaya, a former pro player who had coached him. Rafael said, 'This guy is the real deal.' "

"Roberto is smart with the ball and extremely technical. A lot of the coaches were saying he wasn't fast enough for the college game. I thought to myself, 'I hope they keep talking like that because this is the guy I really want. Coach Kuntz trusted me and said, 'Let's take him.' "

Ordonez said he talked with several Division 1 and Division 2 schools but "something about Fullerton clicked with me. I looked forward to coming to California because of the style of play here. And I knew there were a lot of Latino and Hispanic players who like to be on possession-based teams."

Born in the border city Matamoros in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, Ordonez migrated with his family at age 3 to Edinburg, Texas. The family later moved to McAllen before settling in Pharr, a border city with 80,000 residents.

Ordonez began playing club soccer at age 7. Over the years, he competed for Galaxy, the Tigres Pharr and the Dallas Texans. 


Roberto Ordonez competes for the Galaxy club as a 9-year-old. "When he reached 14, I thought he had the potential to play at a professional level," his father says.

He attended IDEA Toros College Prep, a new charter high school. He took online classes and played for RGVFC Toros Academy. Ordonez was named soccer Freshman MVP and Senior Male Athlete of the Year and served as a team captain in his last three years. The team is affiliated with RGVFC Toros of the United Soccer League.

At Western Texas College, he five goals and five assists in nine games as a freshman and nine goals and five assists in 14 games as a sophomore. 

His father, Roberto Sr., buys and sell cars. His mother, Monica, is a homemaker. He has two younger brothers. Angel, 18, is a freshman at the University Texas at Rio Grande Valley. Diego, 13 is a middle school student.

Ordonez's father, mother and brother Angel all played soccer. Diego competes for a club team. Roberto Sr. watches every Fullerton game on ESPN+, sometimes rewatching a contest several times. He calls his son to provide post-game feedback.

"When Roberto was 7 years old, I saw he had a talent for soccer. And what distinguished him was that he always did something different from the others," his father said. "When he reached 14, I thought he had the potential to play at a professional level."

"Roberto is a very good son, affectionate with his brothers and respectful with his family. He is a leader, and he has a lot of bravery, strength and courage to achieve his dreams."


At RGVFC Toros Academy, Roberto Ordonez was a team captain for his last three years. The program is affiliated with RGVFC Toros of the United Soccer League.

Mason Lamb, a Fullerton defender and Ordonez's roommate, called him a modest star with a self-effacing demeanor. "Rob is a 10 out of 10 guy. He's super-humble – you wouldn't know the success he has had by the way he acts."

"On the field, we rely on him to take care of business in the final third," said Lamb, who is a junior defender from Clermont, Florida. "Rob's a top-quality player who makes the right decisions under pressure. He has a knack for being in the right place at the right time and can finish with either foot."

A communications major with a concentration in entertainment and tourism, Ordonez is aiming to have a career as a professional soccer player. Eventually, he would like to work in sports communications, possibly as a writer or on-air contributor.

Ordonez said he likes everything about Cal State Fullerton. "The school is great. I've really enjoyed working with the coaching staff and playing with my teammates. And of course, the weather is excellent."

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