UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's soccer team heads to Oneonta on Wednesday, September 11 at 4 p.m. before traveling to Marywood University on Saturday, September 14, at 2 p.m.
 
Follow Along: The team's live video against Oneonta can be found here and live stats here. Live video for Marywood can be found here and live stats here.
 
Last Time Out: The Utica University men's soccer team draws 2-2 with the SUNY Morrisville Mustangs on Saturday, September 7. Martin Mendoza (Walden, NY/The Mount Academy) led Utica with three shots on goal, one of them finding the back of the net. Anderson Velazquez (Norwood, NY/Marble Hill) notched a goal of his own, and Noah Nassberg (Naples, FL/Gulf Coast) recorded the team's only assist. All three players currently lead Utica with three points each, while Velazquez leads the way with 10 shots. Morrisville committed 11 fouls compared to Utica's seven. Foti Xidias (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) started in goal for Utica, collecting three saves. Zero in the first and three in the second. The Pioneers jumped out to a hot start in the first half, collecting seven shots compared to Morrisville's zero. Mendoza struck first, giving Utica an early 1-0 lead only 13 minutes into the match. Nassberg connected with Mendoza on a beautiful header to give the team an early lead. Only 12 minutes later, Velazquez scored, giving the Pioneers a 2-0 advantage. Only three corner kicks were taken in the half, two from Utica and one by Morrisville. Both of the Mustang's goals came in the second half, with the first score being a penalty kick from Javier Duarte at the eight-minute mark. Utica and Morrisville traded blows throughout the half as the Pioneers had four shots and three saves and the Mustangs had eight shots and two saves. With seven minutes left, Morrisville evened the match at two on an assist from Jesse Otu, ultimately leading to a 2-2 draw.
 
Top Ten: Velazquez is top three in E8 play with 10 shots, while Nassberg and Mendoza sit top 10 with four shots on goal each. Mendoza's goal against Morrisville came off a beautiful touch pass from Nassberg, which led to a header in the back of the net.
 
Pioneer Pressure: The team had a great defensive outing in the first half against Marywood, placing an immense amount of pressure while also letting up zero shots and only one corner kick. Against Cortland, the team held the Red Dragons to only four shots on goal compared to Utica's five.
 
Oneonta Scout: The Red Dragons start 2024 1-0-2 overall with no games played in SUNYAC action. Oneonta won its first matchup against Union, 1-0 and tied its next two matches 1-1 against St. Lawrence and Hobart. The Red Dragons finished 2023 15-4-3 and 5-2-2 in league play. The team lost in the SUNYAC Championship 1-0 against Cortland but got into the NCAA Division Tournament as an at-large bid. The team fell in the second round to Washington and Lee University, 2-1. The team returns Utica native Ali Somow, who posted 20 points a year ago on six goals and eight assists. So far, in 2024, Somow has two goals and one assist on 11 shots, five on-goal. Kieran Weinstein is the only other Red Dragon who has a goal-scored along with his seven shots.  Al Lucas is the team's goalkeeper, posting nine saves and a .67 goals-against average on 35 shots faced. The Pioneers and Red Dragons have squared off twice, both times won by Oneonta in 2023 and 2002. Assistant coach Jeremy Pantoni was a member of Oneonta's men's soccer team from 2018-2022.
 
About Marywood: The Marywood Pacers jump out to a 2-1 overall start with wins against FDU- Florham (3-2) and Keystone College (5-1). Last season, the team fell short in the AEC conference semifinal against Cabrini University, falling 2-1. Danny Gomez was Marywood's top player in 2023, collecting six goals and three assists, along with going two-for-two on penalty kicks. In the last five games of the season, Gomez recorded six points on three goals. The Pacers will be without goalkeeper Alex Russo, who started 17 of 19 games last season, sporting a 7-8-2 record, five clean sheets and a 1.47 goals-against average. The Pacer's lone loss came against Wilkes Univerisity on August 30 (2-0). Gomez returns for the Pacers after registering a team-leading six goals and three assists on 19 shots on goal. He currently leads Marywood with two goals and six shots. Goalkeepers Brennan Anderson, Niki Leibkuchler and Kelton Ostrander have all registered playing time this season. Ostrander has the team's two wins along with a 1.17 goals against average and an .818 save percentage. This is the first meeting between the Pacers and Pioneers
 
Next Up: Utica gets set to host SUNY-Delhi on Wednesday, September 18 at 4 p.m.