PHILADELPHIA – The Saint Joseph's men's soccer team (2-5-5, 0-2-0 Atlantic 10) will look to bounce back from a pair of losses last weekend as the Hawks take on city-rival and conference foe La Salle on Friday evening at McCarthy Stadium. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
GAME 13 – SAINT JOSEPH'S (2-5-5 // 0-2-0 A-10) vs. LA SALLE (5-5-2 // 2-0-0 A-10)
Friday, October 18 • McCarthy Stadium • 7:30 p.m.
Live Stats | Live Video
SERIES HISTORY – La Salle leads 23-22-10
First Meeting: 10/11/58, Saint Joseph's 3-2 • Last Meeting: 10/26/12, T 1-1
Last Saint Joseph's Win: 11/7/08, 1-0 • Last La Salle Win: 11/6/11, 4-0
Coach D'Ambra vs. La Salle: 0-1-2 • Saint Joseph's Streak: Last meeting resulted in draw
SCOUTING LA SALLE: La Salle (5-5-2, 2-0-0 A-10) is coming off of a 3-1 win over Duquesne and 2-1 win over St. Bonaventure from last weekend. Jason Plumhoff (2G, 3A), Pat Sullivan (1G, 1A), Rob Friskey (1G, 1A), Joe Farrell (1G), and Nick Becker (1A) all tallied points for the Explorers while goalkeeper John McCarthy made 10 saves and allowed two goals in a full 180:00.
On the season, Plumhoff (6G, 7A) leads La Salle in scoring with 19 points while 16 Explorers in total have tallied 1+ point on the season. McCarthy (5-4-2) sports a 1.33 GAA and .795 saves percentage in 1012:14.
LAST TIME OUT AGAINST THE EXPLORERS: On October 26 of last season, after 110 minutes of fierce play, Saint Joseph's battled to a 1-1 double-overtime draw against the Explorers at McCarthy Stadium. Alex Critzos found an offensive opportunity in an empty Explorer net and chipped a shot into the left side, putting the Hawks on the board, 1-0, in the 27th minute. The Explorers responded in the 63rd minute as La Salle's Jidell Roach made a steal amid SJU defenders and dished the ball over to Tom Kalpokas, who flicked the ball into SJU's net to equalize the score, 1-1. Hawks goalkeeper Andrew D'Ottavi would make five saves in the remaining 27 minutes of the second half and three crucial saves in the first overtime to preserve the tie for SJU. For the game, La Salle outshot Saint Joseph's 31-15 (13-5 on goal) and held the advantage in corner kicks, 8-3. Defense was key in the match for SJU as the Hawks defense blocked three shots and D'Ottavi made a season-high 12 saves in the effort.
HAWKS' ATLANTIC 10 OPENING WEEKEND: In the opening pair of Atlantic 10 matches last weekend, the Hawks fell to St. Bonaventure (2-0) and Duquesne (3-0). In both matches combined, the Hawks totaled 27 shots – as did the opposing Bonnies and Dukes. However, outscored 5-0 on the weekend, Saint Joseph's saw four of those opposing five tallies come in the second half as the Hawks struggled in finding the net in the final 45:00 of each match.
Against St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph's saw three of 11 second-half shots land on goal, compared to three of five from St. Bonaventure, the third of which was good for the tally. Against Duquesne, the Hawks landed one of five second-half shots on goal while the Dukes were good for three of six – all three of which found the back of the net for Duquesne. Percentage wise, in the second halves, opponents sported a combined SOG percentage of 55% (6-of-11) and saw four of those six shots on goal count for tallies. SJU was just 4-of-16 (25%) in second-half shots on goal, firing seven wide, three high, and having two deflected.
On the weekend, senior midfielder Jimmy Reilly (2-of-5) and senior forward Ryan McFadden (2-of-2) were the only Hawks to register multiple shots on goal.
For the season, junior midfielder Jake Nelson (4G), sophomore midfielder Tim Lazorko (2G, 2A), junior forward Alex Critzos (2G), and Reilly (1G, 2A) lead the Hawks in scoring. After a six-save weekend, redshirt senior goalkeeper Andrew D'Ottavi (2-5-5, 0-2-0 A-10) sports a 1.51 GAA and .698 saves percentage in 1135:00.
