GAMEDAY CENTRAL
(RV) Embry-Riddle (2-1) vs. Northwood (3-3)
DATE: Wednesday, Sept. 25, 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: 4-1
EMBRY-RIDDLE'S LAST 10 GAMES: 8-2
EMBRY-RIDDLE AT HOME IN 2013: 0-1
NORTHWOOD ON THE ROAD IN 2013: 2-3
AT A GLANCE
The Eagles open up their 2013 Sun Conference schedule on Wednesday evening by hosting the Northwood Seahawks at the Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium. The Eagles are coming off a two week layoff after going on the road to beat NCAA II Florida Southern on Sept. 10.
Embry-Riddle will get
Veit Couturier back after the junior forward served a red card suspension during the FSC game and will look to continue its defensive dominance as the Blue and Gold has posted two shutouts in three contests.
ABOUT THE SEAHAWKS
The Seahawks come to Daytona Beach on a two game winning streak after posting a 2-0 win over Johnson & Wales and a 6-0 shutout of Clearwater Christian over the last week. Joe Zakowicz, formerly Ave Maria's coach, is in his first season with Northwood and has the Seahawks at 3-3 overall and 1-0 in league play.
Marcus Johansson, a three-time All-Sun Conference selection, leads NU with three goals on 10 shots while Victor Lindstrom, Olli Isosalo and Callum Sinclair have each chipped in a goal.
Patrick O'Neil has started the last two contests for the Seahawks, recording two shutouts between the pipes.
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
Sept. 19, 2012 - The Embry-Riddle men's soccer team opened Sun Conference play on Wednesday night against Northwood University in West Palm Beach, Fla. The Eagles got nine saves from goalkeeper
Nils Carlson, but it wasn't enough as the Blue and Gold lost 3-2 in double overtime.
The Eagles (1-5, 0-1 TSC) got on the board first as
Nicklas Petersson beat his man to the ball in the right corner and his cross found
Viktor Gudnason who had a nice touch pass to Alexander MacDonald who placed the ball just inside the left post to give the Blue and Gold the 1-0 advantage.
Northwood (4-2, 1-0 TSC) had a great chance to score in the 41
st minute off a set piece. Victor Lindstrom took a header that was stopped by
Nils Carlson and then Sami Lahtinen got a touch on the loose ball but was blocked as
Luis Velasquez held the near post, turning back the Seahawks attack.
The Seahawks outshot the Eagles 8-5, including a 6-2 edge on goal. MacDonald was responsible for both shots on goal and Carlson had five saves.
Northwood came out slow in the second period, but were able to get the equalizer on a penalty kick by Liam McInally. The PK came after Velasquez was called for an illegal tackle in the box.
Northwood took the lead in the 66
th minute off a set piece as Olli Isosalo took a corner from the near side and his cross found the head of Victor Lindstrom who found the net, giving NU the 2-1 lead.
Petersson netted his first goal of the season, the equalizer in the 79
th minute.
Veit Couturier gave Petersson a tight touch pass which he used to dribble past his defender and placed the ball in the near lower 90, tying the score at two.
Embry-Riddle had a chance to score in the closing seconds of regulation as
Veit Couturier's shot from 25 feet curled and hit the far post.
Nicklas Petersson had one more shot as his header was stopped by the Seahawks goalie.
The Eagles outshot the Seahawks 11-8 in the second half, but were outscored 2-1 in the period.
The two teams entered overtime tied at two goals each. Northwood came out aggressive in the extra period, but couldn't capitalize on two early scoring chances. The Eagles countered with two looks of their own but failed to convert and the game remained all-square after the first overtime.
Neither team took control in the second overtime until Northwood received a corner kick in the 105
th minute. Isosalo took the kick that was tapped by Mayowa Tola-Issac, the loose ball was then picked up by Joe Hughes who snuck the ball just past Velasquez on the near post, for the game-winning goal.
The Eagles finished the game with 20 shots, seven on goal and six corner kicks while Northwood tallied 22 shots, 13 on goal and 11 corner kicks.
SHUTOUTS WANTED
Carlson recorded his 14th career shutout in the Eagles' 4-0 victory against Florida Southern, putting him just three behind Viktor Bergstrand for the all-time program record (17). Carlson recorded 10 shutouts as a freshman in 2011 before adding two last season. Carlson also ranks fifth all-time in goals against average (1.24) and fifth in career saves (157).
ONE OF THE ELITE COACHES
Entering his 20th season at the helm of Embry-Riddle Men's Soccer, Dave Gregson ranks 13th in the NAIA on the active winningest coaching list. Gregson's 221-119-25 record through 20 seasons of play gives him a .639 winning percentage.
WIDE OPEN TSC
Featuring some of the best teams in the country, The Sun Conference is about to begin league play this week and the conference appears to be open for the taking. Just one team (Webber International) is undefeated and just three other teams (Embry-Riddle, Johnson & Wales and SCAD Savannah) have less than two losses.
