The Bruins have a chance to secure a fourth consecutive shutout Thursday.

No. 6 UCLA men’s Soccer (2-0-1) will face Cal State Fullerton (1-3-0) in its fourth consecutive home game at Wallis Annenberg Stadium. So far, the Bruins remain undefeated, having secured clean sheets in all of their regular season games.

Though Cal State Fullerton kicked off its season on a four-game skid, it will enter Thursday night’s duel having steamrolled past Utah Tech 6-1 on Sunday, with midfielder Erick Serrano scoring a hat-trick. The Titans also outlasted the Bruins in last season’s matchup, recording nine shots on target en route to a 4-1 victory.

This season, however, UCLA’s defense has only conceded a total of seven shots on goal, despite playing against three top-20 ranked sides.

Coach Ryan Jorden has employed unconventional tactics – including finishing the game with two right backs – to help his team keep a clean sheet in its previous affair, a 2-0 breeze past Portland.

“We’re trying to look at, okay, how do we manage games,” Jorden said. “Having two guys with some defensive mindset down the right hand side, hopefully, that means it’s hard for somebody to come down the left.”

Freshman defender Shakir Nixon – who came through the LAFC Academy before arriving in Westwood – earned Big Ten Defender of the Week honors after coming off the bench to score and assist against Portland.

However, the newcomer said after the game that he was focused on securing more shutouts as the season progresses.

“The main thing for us and on the back line has been communication,” Nixon said. “We’ve just been talking to one another, directing one another. When we see players running in behind, I feel like if we continue to do that, we’re going to have another clean sheet.”

The team also has seen rotation in goal, with junior Sam Joseph – who was named Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week – and sophomore goalkeeper Wyatt Nelson both spending time between the posts. The two goalkeepers also rotated regularly last season, playing 10 and eight games, respectively.

“We know we have two great keepers. Between the two of them, they pitch their shutdowns now, and they both played,” Jorden said. “We look at each opponent. We look at what we think we need in the game. And I would say that nobody’s going to argue with me that I’m not getting it right.”

One aspect of game management that Jorden said he wants to improve on is discipline, after junior midfielder Cam Wilkerson was sent off in last year’s clash against the Titans due to a late tackle.

Wilkerson, who has started all three games so far this season, will have a second chance against this year’s Titan squad, which has conceded 13 goals in four games.