UTICA, NY – The Utica College men's soccer team is ready to hit the road this weekend for their first conference matchup of the season. Utica takes on the Houghton Highlanders in an E8 clash on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Houghton, NY.
FOLLOWING THE ACTION: Live video and stats will be made available courtesy of Houghton College at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/houghton/.
HOT START: The Pioneers are off to a hot start, and now stand at 4-1-1 on the year. The last time Utica was off to a start of this caliber was back in 2012 when they started the year off 4-2. They look to keep the momentum rolling as conference play approaches.
LAST TIME OUT: The Pioneers are coming off a 2-0 win over SUNY Potsdam on Tuesday. The lone goal of the match was scored two minutes in by Utica's Patrick Hynes (Glenmont, NY/Bethlehem), and the Pioneers didn't look back. The defense excelled for Utica as goalkeeper Randy Miksch (Lake Villa, IL/Warren Township) earned another clean sheet. Utica holds a two match win streak.
LEADING THE WAY: Junior Patrick Hynes (Glenmont, NY/Bethlehem) led the way for the Pioneers on Tuesday by scoring his first goal of the season. Hynes has team highs with three assists and five points, and is also tied for first with goalkeeper Randy Miksch (Lake Villa, IL/Warren Township) with the most minutes on the pitch this year at 565. Hynes has not come off for a reserve at any point this season.
WHO TO WATCH: In addition to Hynes, freshmen Connor McQuillan (Rochester, NY/Brighton) and Jhonny Theze (Bronx, NY/Claremont International), and senior Tucker Marvin (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) also lead the Pioneers with five points. They have two goals and an assist each.
SAVING THE DAY: Junior Randy Miksch (Lake Villa, IL/Warren Township) was flawless against Potsdam with five saves, and has gone perfect in back-to-back matches with clean sheets against Clarkson and Potsdam. He is the Empire 8 Conference Defensive Player of the Week. He has not allowed a goal in the last 205:20 dating back to the late minutes of regulation in the Cobleskill match.
DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE: The Pioneers have allowed two goals or less in all of their matches this season. The defense has been progressing into midseason form by allowing a goal or less in their last three contests.
EVERYONE PUTS UTICA IN THE CORNER: The Pioneers have possessed the ball very well so far this season, and that time of possession has lent itself to set piece opportunities. The Pioneers have taken an Empire 8 best 42 corner kicks so far this season.
STAYING ONSIDE: Utica has committed the third lowest rate of offside infractions in the conference with ten through their first six matches of the season.
ON AVERAGE: The Pioneers are averaging 1.83 goals per match to rank third in the Empire 8 conference. The Pioneers have allowed 1.17 goals per match to rank fourth defensively in the conference. The Pioneers also rank second in shots on goal per match among Empire 8 clubs this season.
CONFERENCE LEADERS: Freshman Jhonny Theze (Bronx, NY/Claremont International) is second in the conference with 25 shots on goal. Marvin, Theze, Hynes, and McQuillan are tied for seventh in the conference with their five points. Adnan Bakolovic is ranked third in assists for the year with three despite missing a few games due to injury. He is tied with teammate Patrick Hynes (Glenmont, NY/Bethlehem) in that category.
SCOUTING HOUGHTON: The Highlanders are 2-3-2 to start the season. They lost their last time out by a 5-0 margin to RIT. Senior Ben DiCrasto leads the Highlanders with four goals and eight points on the season. Senior Daniel Bussey is another threat the Highlanders have, as he has one goal and two points on the year. Goalkeeper Caleb Loew has made 30 saves between the pipes for Houghton. Their wins have come against Alfred State and Geneva.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Pioneers will host SUNY ESF on Wednesday, September 25th at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. The match against the Mighty Oaks is set to begin at 7:30 p.m.
