PHILADELPHIA – The Saint Joseph's men's soccer squad (6-9-1, 3-4-0 A-10) will host city- and conference-rival La Salle (8-7-0, 3-3-0 A-10) in the 2016 home finale this Saturday, October 29. Start time on Sweeney Field is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Live streaming of the match will be provided via a subscription to the Atlantic 10 Network. Saint Joseph's and La Salle are tied for sixth in A-10 standings.
Saturday's match will cap the Atlantic 10 regular season for SJU; A-10 matches still run next Wednesday, November 2 and Saturday, November 5. The Atlantic 10 Championship runs from Thursday, November 10 through Sunday, November 13 at Davidson's Alumni Soccer Stadium in Davidson, N.C. and will see eight teams make the field. The Hawks will play at Yale next Wednesday, November 2 in the regular-season finale.
SENIOR NIGHT
Prior to the start of Saturday's match, the Saint Joseph's men's soccer program will honor its seven seniors - forward Mori Diane, forward Ted Foley, midfielder Bliss Harris, goalkeeper Jay Higbee, midfielder Sam Irvin, midfielder Eric Jordan, and defender Mike Stuski - for their commitment and dedication to the program over their four-year careers on Hawk Hill. The Senior Day ceremony is scheduled to begin at 6:50 p.m.
CAMPER APPRECIATION NIGHT
The Saint Joseph's men's soccer program invites all 2016 SJU Hawks summer campers to attend Saturday's match. All 2016 SJU Hawks summer camp participants will be invited to participate in the pre-game player introductions down on the field. In addition, campers will be brought onto the field at halftime to play, will be greeted by the SJU Hawk mascot, acknowledged and brought together for a large camp group photo. All campers are requested to wear their Halloween costume of an SJU Hawks summer camp t-shirt and are asked to bring a soccer ball for collection in honor of the Kick for Nick Foundation. For more information, contact Steve Wacker at 610-660-1764 or by email at swacker@sju.edu.
KICK FOR NICK
Nicholas Maderas was a very special young man who died on duty in Iraq in 2006 just before turning 20 years old. He was a soccer player who had such a passion for the game that he would distribute soccer balls to poor children in countries around the world where he was stationed. After his passing, the Kick for Nick Foundation was formed to carry out his work, run by his mother and father. The Saint Joseph's men's soccer program is asking for soccer ball donations at Saturday's match.
GAME DEDICATED TO PHILOMENA STENDARDO
The Hawks continue to play and pray for Phil! Philomena Stendardo has been attending SJU soccer summer camps for the past few years, and this past summer, Phil was named the Camper of the Week at SJU's Lansing Soccer Club Camp. Phil was recently diagnosed with Glioblastoma and is currently receiving treatment. Saturday's game will be dedicated to Phil.
* * *
The Hawks have dropped their last four matches while La Salle is riding a two-match win streak into Saturday's match-up on Hawk Hill.
Saint Joseph's junior midfielder Matt Crawford leads the squad in scoring with 17 points on a team-best seven goals and team-best three assists. In conference matches, Crawford ties for second in the A-10 in total points (10) and goals (4). Diane and sophomore forwards Isaac Agyapong and Derek MacKinnon have added two goals apiece.
Junior goalkeeper Greg O'Connell (6-9-1, 3-4-0 A-10) sports a 1.29 goals against average and .741 save percentage in all 1470:44 to go with five shutouts.
La Salle enters Saturday's match coming off of a 3-0 win at George Mason this past Saturday, where three different Explorers scored and goalkeeper Cameron Keys has earned his second consecutive shutout; Keys has played the last two matches for the Explorers, while Mike Kirk had started 12 of the first 13 matches. Colman Kennedy and John Ciarlante lead La Salle with four goals apiece while Matt Robinson's three goals and five assists give him a team-best 11 points.
In A-10 play, the Explorers dropped three of their first four, with a league-opening loss to Saint Louis, 2-1, a 2-1 win at Rhode Island, and back-to-back losses to VCU, 2-0, and Fordham, 1-0. La Salle then won its most recent two matches, against Dayton, 1-0, and George Mason, 3-0.
La Salle owns a 26-22-10 all-time series edge over Saint Joseph's; the Hawks are 0-5-1 under the direction of head coach Don D'Ambra, with the last meeting resulting in a 1-0 loss in 2015. SJU's last win over La Salle was on November 7, 2008, when Colin Baker '10 put away a first-half penalty kick in the 1-0 victory.
