UTICA, NY - The Utica College men's soccer team enters the final week of the regular season having already clinched an Empire 8 Conference Tournament berth. The team will travel to Geneva, NY on Tuesday afternoon for a 4 p.m. non-conference game against Hobart College. The Pioneers will then finish the regular season at home on Friday, October 29 at 7 p.m. against Hartwick College in what will be Utica's senior day.
Follow Along: Hobart will provide live video for Tuesday's game through
https://hwsathletics.com/watch/?Live=1171&type=Live while on Friday, fans can follow
https://portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/ for live video and/or stats.
Last Time Out: The Pioneers traveled to Albany on Saturday night and came home with a 2-0 win over the Russell Sage Gators. After a scoreless first period,
Gian Rodriguez (Buenos Aires, Argentina/Northwood) put the first point on the board with a goal in the 55th minute before
Michael Bernardo (Bayshore, NY/Bayshore ) iced the game in the 76th minute with his first goal of the season which was assisted by
Jacob Sherline (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) and
Brady Barnard (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool).
Foti Xidias (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) recorded his fourth shutout of the season in the win while making seven saves on the night.
Where We Stand: UC (8-5-1, 5-2 Empire 8) has won four straight games and is currently third in the conference standings, one game behind Houghton in the loss column. Since Houghton holds the tiebreaker over Utica with its 2-1 overtime win on September 18, the Pioneers will need some help in order to potentially host the semifinal game against Houghton next week. UC will need to beat Hartwick on Friday while the Highlanders will have to lose its final two games against Nazareth and Sage in order for the Pioneers to play at Gaetano Stadium on November 3. However, St. John Fisher can further complicate the postseason outlook with wins in its final two games which would put them at 5-2-1 in the E8. If Utica falls to Hartwick, Fisher would jump the Pioneers in the standings and then depending on how Houghton finishes, UC would be looking at third or fourth place which could mean playing in the first round game on Monday, November 1. Games to look for this week that will help determine Utica's seeding: Houghton at Nazareth at 3 p.m. and Fisher at Keuka at 4 p.m. on October 27, Fisher at Elmira at 1 p.m. and Sage at Houghton at 1 p.m. on October 30.
Senior Day: On Saturday, the Utica College men's soccer program will recognize
Patrick Hynes (Glenmont, NY/Bethlehem),
Jahren James (River Vale, NJ/Pascack Valley),
Ramazani Juma (Utica, NY/Proctor),
LJ Nuzzo (Peru, NY/Peru Central),
Colin McCarthy (Vestal, NY/Vestal) and
Daniel Varsames (Gansevoort, NY/Saratoga Springs) prior to the game for their dedication and efforts to the team over the past four-plus seasons.
Hot at the Right Time: After a somewhat slow start to their seasons,
Sory Konate (Harlem, NY/Forsyth Satellite Academy) and
Ramazani Juma (Utica, NY/Proctor) have been heating up right when the Pioneers needed them most. During the team's four-game winning streak, Konate has connected for three goals and two assists on five shots on goal. During that same span, Juma has also scored three goals and dished out one assist on nine shots on goal.
Brick Wall: Foti Xidias (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) has been spectacular over the last four games. Since the team's 2-1 loss to Nazareth, Xidias has allowed just two goals in the last four games including no goals allowed over the last three games. Xidias' season goals against average dropped to .926 which places him second in the Empire 8 as does his .821 save percentage. His save percentage, goals against average and win total are all currently in the top-10 for single season program history.
A Look at Hobart: The Statesmen will enter Tuesday's game with an overall 7-6-2 record while carrying a 3-3-2 mark in the Liberty League, placing them sixth in the conference standings. Coming off of a 0-0 tie with Vassar College on October 23, Hobart has fared well at home this season as the team is 3-0-2 at Cozzens Field. As a team the Statesmen average 1.20 goals per game while allowing 1.60. Amad Miller leads the offensive charge with five goals over 15 games while Matias Valenzuela Matic leads the team with 11 points. In goal, Guillermo Castaneda Chang (5-3-2) has made nine starts this season and has allowed 1.21 goals per game, recorded 35 saves and owns a .729 save percentage.
Scouting Hartwick: The Hawks (6-7-2, 1-5-1 Empire 8) will have the week off before traveling to Utica on Friday for what is also its final game of the season. The team ranks sixth in the E8 averaging 1.250 goals per game while sitting in fifth with a scoring margin of 0.06. Jake Zona leads the offense as he's currently top-10 in the conference with 34 shot attempts, 15 shots on goal and four goals over 15 games. In goal, Jodi Johnson (6-4-2) has started in 11 of his 12 appearances and ranks third in the E8 with a 1.048 goals against average. He's also ninth in the conference averaging 1.85 saves per game.
Up Next: Having already clinched a berth in the 2021 Empire 8 Conference Tournament, the only question remaining for the Pioneers is where they will play in the semifinals on Wednesday, November 3. That will be decided by the end of this week while the time of the semifinal match is TBD.
