UTICA, NY – The Utica College men's soccer team returns to Empire 8 Conference play on Saturday as the Pioneers cap a three game home stand as they host Elmira College at 3 p.m.

Playoff Implications: The Pioneers currently hold a 6-7 overall record and a win on Saturday would be a step in the right direction in regards to earning one of the coveted top four spots in the Empire 8 … UC is currently winless (0-3) in Empire 8 play but they have four conference games left on the regular season docket to turn things around and make a playoff push. 

Heading in the Right Direction: Utica got back on track Tuesday night as the Pioneers snapped a three game skid and cruised to a 4-1 victory over visiting SUNY Canton … The Pioneers jumped out to a 3-0 first half lead and never looked back to earn the non-conference victory.

Scoring Machine: Utica's Julian Fonseca (Rocky Hill, CT/Bridgton) led the way on Tuesday night with a career-high five points to increase his team-leading point total to 16 (three goals, 10 assists) this season … Fonseca needs just two more helpers to tie the program's single season assist record of 12 originally set by Roberto Sgueglia (2010) and Evan Dufault (2007) … Fonseca currently ranks second in the conference with an average of 1.23 points per contest … He has six more assists than any other player in the league.

Purcell Heating Up: Utica's Alex Purcell (Lansing, NY/Lansing) snapped a five game scoring drought on Tuesday when he drove home the Pioneers' first goal of the contest against Canton … Purcell is tied for the team lead with four goals this season and he ranks second on the squad with nine total points.

Muller & Hynes: Utica sophomore Thomas Muller (Camillus, NY/Bishop Ludden) is tied with Purcell for the team lead with four goals this season, while freshman Patrick Hynes (Glenmont, NY/Bethlehem) netted one goal and added one assist on Tuesday to increase his season point total to six (two goals, two assists).  

Between the Pipes: Jonathan Side (Plattsburgh, NY/Plattsburgh)'s three shutouts this year are tied for third in the conference … He also ranks second in the league with an average of 5.89 saves per game … He has three wins this year to go along with a 1.44 goals against average. 

Against Elmira: Utica's last win over Elmira came back in 2014 as the Pioneers topped the Soaring Eagles 2-1 … Bita Gazashvili (Tiblisi, Georgia/) tallied an assist in the contest.
 
Meet the Soaring Eagles: Elmira currently holds a 2-8-1 overall record heading into Saturday's matchup against Utica … The Soaring Eagles are also 1-2 in conference play with their lone conference victory coming against Nazareth (2-0) on Sept. 23 … Rodney Smith leads the team with two goals … Jacob Liese started the most recent contest in net for Elmira and he holds a 1.29 goals against average to go along with 37 saves this year.