UTICA, NY - Coming off of a 2-0 week, the Utica College men's soccer team will look to keep rolling against another pair of Empire 8 opponents this week. On Wednesday, the Pioneers will host the Keuka College Wolves at 7 p.m. before traveling to Albany for a 6 p.m. game against the Sage Gators. 
 
Follow Along: Live video and stats will be provided on Wednesday through https://portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/ and on Saturday, Sage will provide live video and stats through https://portal.stretchinternet.com/sageathletics/. 
 
Last Time Out: Utica traveled to Alfred University on October 16 in what was a pivotal matchup between two .500 teams in the Empire 8. Ramazani Juma (Utica, NY/Proctor) connected with Byamungu Mugushu (Syracuse, NY/Bishop Grimes) in the 20th minute in what would turn out to be the game-winning goal as the Pioneers walked away 1-0 winners. UC outshot Alfred 19-11 on the afternoon, including 13-4 in the second period, while in goal, Foti Xidias (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) recorded three saves and his third shutout of the season. 
 
Where We Stand: UC (6-5-1, 3-2 Empire 8) is currently in third place in the conference standings with nine points, three points behind Houghton College who is in second place with 12 (4-1 E8). The Pioneers have four games remaining in the regular season, three of which against Empire 8 opponents; Keuka (0-3-1 E8), Sage (2-3 E8) and Hartwick (1-3-1 E8). As it stands right now, Sage is the only one of those three teams in the playoff picture while Hartwick stands two points behind Fisher, Sage, Alfred and Elimra, all of which are even at six points. Utica has remained near the bottom of the conference offensively averaging roughly one goal per game however, the team's 14 goals allowed ranks second behind Nazareth who is still unbeaten in E8 play. Of its last four games, UC will play one at home followed by two on the road before closing out the regular season at Gaetano Stadium on October 29. 
 
X Gon' Give it to Ya': Goalkeeper Foti Xidias (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) came through on Saturday in UC's 1-0 win over Alfred which would be his third shutout of the season, tied for the second most in the Empire 8. Xidias also ranks within the top-3 in the conference with a 1.052 goals against average, 53 total saves as well as a .791 save percentage. 
 
Mr. Clutch: Sory Konate (Harlem, NY/Forsyth Satellite Academy) scored his second and third goals of the season when the Pioneers needed them the most on October 13 at St. John Fisher. Konate netted the equalizer in the 78th minute before giving Utica a 3-2 lead and eventual win over the Cardinals nearly six minutes later in the 84th minute. Konate now leads the team with three goals and seven points through 12 games. 
 
Best of the Week: Ramazani Juma (Utica, NY/Proctor) was named Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Week for his performances against St. John Fisher and Alfred last week. Juma totaled four points on one goal and two assists over two games as the Pioneers finished the week 2-0. Juma scored Utica's first goal of the game against St. John Fisher on October 13 which evened the score less than two minutes before halftime. The Utica native also connected with teammate Sory Konate (Harlem, NY/Forsyth Satellite Academy) in the 84^th minute for the game-winning goal to bring UC back to .500 in the conference. Against Alfred University on October 16, Juma assisted on Byamungu Mugushu's (Syracuse, NY/Bishop Grimes) goal in the 20^th minute which would turn out to also be the game-winning goal for Utica in its 1-0 win over the Saxons. 
 
Running With Wolves: The Keuka Wolves currently sit at 2-8-2 and 0-3-1 in Empire 8 play. Since defeating Penn College on September 21, the Wolves have gone 0-3-1 over its last four games. Keuka ranks last in the Empire 8 offensively averaging .917 goals per game while ranking eighth in the conference with a -1.50 scoring margin and 131 attempted shots over 12 games. Benjamin McKeown is responsible for three of the team's 11 goals and doing so on seven shot on goal attempts. In goal, freshman Cory Cangemi has allowed 2.37 goals per game while recording 60 saves on a .682 save percentage over 11 starts. UC and Keuka have not met since 2010 which ended in a 3-2 Pioneers road win in overtime.  
 
Later, Gator: The 2020 Empire 8 semifinalist Sage Gators enter the week 7-5-2 overall and 2-3 in E8 play. Since the calendar flipped to October, Sage has posted a 3-1-1 record including three straight wins over St. John Fisher, Wells College and Keuka. The Gators have been one of the most aggressive teams on offense, ranking second in the conference with 225 shots attempted (one behind Nazareth for the most) while ranking third averaging 1.571 goals per game and posting a 0.36 scoring margin. Jeaneste Pierre is currently tied for fifth in the conference with five goals on the year while Nolan Murphy and Tyler Brennan have split time in goal this season. Murphy is 3-3-1 with a 1.67 GAA, 42 saves and a .778 save percentage while Brennan is 4-2-1 with a 0.60 GAA, 22 saves and a .846 save percentage. 

Coming Up: UC will play its final two regular season games next week. The Pioneers will travel to Geneva, NY on October 26 for a 4 p.m. game against Hobart College before wrapping up Empire 8 play on October 29 at 7 p.m. against Hartwick College.