GAMEDAY CENTRAL
#11 Embry-Riddle (9-1, 7-0) vs. Webber International (7-2, 4-2)
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 19, 2013
CITY: Daytona Beach, Fla.
SITE: ERAU Soccer Stadium
START: 7 p.m.
LIVE STATS: Stretch Internet
LIVE AUDIO: Stretch Internet
LIVE VIDEO: Stretch Internet
EMBRY-RIDDLE'S LAST 5 GAMES: 5-0
EMBRY-RIDDLE'S LAST 10 GAMES: 9-1
EMBRY-RIDDLE AT HOME IN 2013: 4-1
WEBBER INTERNATIONAL ON THE ROAD IN 2013: 5-1
AT A GLANCE
The 11th-ranked Eagles return to Daytona Beach on Saturday for their final regular season home match of 2013. The Eagles host Webber International in a Sun Conference contest after posting a come-from-behind 3-2 road victory over Warner on Wednesday, the squad's eighth consecutive victory. Freshman
Sigurbergur Elisson scored twice for the Eagles, including the game-winner in the 71st minute on a cross from
Nicklas Petersson.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS
Head Coach Neil Cockburn brings his team to the ERAU Soccer Stadium with an impressive 7-2 overall ledger and 4-2 mark in league action. The Warriors have wins over SCAD Savannah, Florida Memorial and St. Thomas, but dropped their most recent league game against Northwood on the road in West Palm Beach.
WIU is paced offensively by Fabian Egger as the senior leads not only his team, but the conference with 10 goals on 22 shots. No other Warrior player has more than two goals. Brandon Stout has been the mainstay for WIU in goal, securing 41 saves in eight games, allowing just four goals for a 0.50 goals-against-average.
The Warriors currently sit in fourth in the league table with four contests remaining, and all but tonight's at home in Babson Park.
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
Oct. 14, 2012 - BABSON PARK, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle men's soccer team used a three goal first half to beat the Warriors of Webber International, 5-1 in mid-October in Babson Park, Fla. With the win the Eagles improved to 4-7-1 overall and 4-2-1 in Sun Conference play. The loss dropped Webber International to 4-7-1 on the season, 1-5-1 in conference play.
After a slow start to the first half, the Eagles finally broke through in the 17
th minute as
Veit Couturier netted his 11
th goal of the season. The play started with a
Sam Fairhurst free kick. Fairhurst gave a quick touch to
Erik Norburg who ran onto the ball and dribbled down the left side before sending a bender into the box. The Warrior defense failed to clear the ball and it fell to Couturier who blasted a shot past WIU netminder Matthew Brust, for a 1-0 lead.
After thwarting a couple Warrior scoring chances, the Eagles stretched their lead playing possession, controlling the ball down the field into the penalty box. After several soft passes, Fairhurst made a quick touch to
Nicklas Petersson who shot across the goal and found the lower right corner of the net, giving the Blue and Gold a lead they would not relinquish.
The Warriors would not go without a fight though, scoring 35 seconds after the Eagles as Michael Dowson fired a shot from 25 yards out, past
Nils Carlson to cut the Embry-Riddle lead in half, 2-1.
Not to be outdone, the Eagles again possessed the ball though the midfield and Couturier used a one-touch pass to Fairhurst who had an opening and buried a 25-yard shot in the upper left corner, extending the lead to 3-1 heading into the half.
Less than five minutes into the half, the Eagles scored on their first shot of the period as
Alan Vezza's cross found Fairhurst's feet at the top of the box. Fairhurst settled the ball and fired a shot past the Warrior goalkeeper for a 4-1 advantage.
Couturier delivered the exclamation point with 20 minutes to play. After latching onto an errant pass, the sophomore netted his second goal of the game from 20 yards out, to add to the Embry-Riddle tally for a 5-1 final.
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Carlson finished with three saves on the day, while Brust, who left the game in the second half, collected six saves and Stout finished with one. The Eagles outshot the Warriors 26-11, including a 12-4 edge in shots on goal.
ALL-TIME SERIES
The Eagles have dominated the all-time series with the Warriors, holding a 27-8-1 record against WIU. Embry-Riddle has won nine consecutive against Webber International, a streak stretching back to 2006 when
John Haworth was at the helm of the Warrior program.
NAIA NATIONAL OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After a record-breaking performance last Saturday, Embry-Riddle's
Nicklas Petersson was announced by the NAIA as the Men's Soccer National Offensive Player of the Week. The senior forward/midfielder was selected out of a pool of conference, independent and unaffiliated grouping award winners (
NAIA Release).
Petersson scored five times and racked up eight assists in two games for the 16th-ranked Eagles last week, with four scores and all eight assists coming in Saturday's 18-0 win over visiting Ave Maria. Petersson's eight assists against the Gyrenes broke a 13-year NAIA record, and he tallied 16 total points, the fourth-highest point total in NAIA single-game history and an Embry-Riddle program record.
As a team, the Eagles broke school records in goals (18), assists (19) and points (55) with the shutout victory, while
Nils Carlson tied the program record with his 17th career shutout.
Petersson's performance last week earned him Sun Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors for the second time in 2013, and pushed him to the top of the league statistical lead in many categories, including points (30), points/game (3.33), assists (12) and assists/game (1.33).
TOP OF THE CONFERENCE
The Eagles hold a 7-0 mark in league play, and with Saturday's win, clinched a berth into The Sun Conference Tournament. The Eagles need just one draw or win over their final three games to guarantee a home match for the conference tournament quarterfinals on Nov. 9.
ONE OF THE ELITE COACHES
Entering his 20th season at the helm of Embry-Riddle Men's Soccer, Dave Gregson ranked 13th in the NAIA on the active winningest coaching list. Gregson's 228-119-25 record through 20 seasons of play gives him a .647 winning percentage.
