GAMEDAY CENTRAL
(RV) Embry-Riddle (3-1, 1-0) vs. Johnson & Wales (7-1 ,0-1)
DATE: Saturday, Sept. 28, 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: 3-2
EMBRY-RIDDLE'S LAST 10 GAMES: 7-3
EMBRY-RIDDLE AT HOME IN 2013: 1-1
JOHNSON & WALES ON THE ROAD IN 2013: 4-0
AT A GLANCE
Embry-Riddle hosts Johnson & Wales on Saturday in each team's second Sun Conference match of 2013 at the Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium. The Eagles are coming off a 3-1 win over visiting Northwood on Wednesday in which the hosts scored twice in the second frame, including the game-winner off the foot of
Viktor Gudnason, to down the Seahawks.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS
Phil Zayas is in his third season as the Wildcats' coach, and has already surpassed his two-year win total of five with seven victories in 2013. JWU has wins over Trinity Baptist (two), Truett-McConell, Brewton-Parker, Colorado Christian and Florida College (two), while dropping its only league match to Northwood (2-0).
The Wildcats feature a potent offensive attack, led by brothers Pedro and Victor Codo who have each scored nine goals on 21 shots apiece. In total, JWU has scored 31 goals while allowing just seven in eight games.
Chris De La Cruz has made 23 saves and has posted four shutouts in net for the Wildcats.
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
Oct. 28, 2012 - NORTH MIAMI, Fla. – Two first half goals is all the Embry-Riddle men's soccer team needed in a 4-0 shutout of Johnson & Wales in North Miami, Fla. last season. With the victory the Eagles improved to 6-3-1 in Sun Conference play with a 6-8-1 overall ledger. The Wildcats season ended with an 0-10 mark in conference play and 4-13 record overall.
The Eagles used a methodical attack to net their first goal. Embry-Riddle possessed the ball through the midfield with
Sam Fairhurst carrying the ball to the left side of the box. Fairhurst crossed the ball to the feet of
Frankie Arias, who tapped the ball behind to
Nicklas Petersson. Petersson beat Wildcats' goalkeeper Mouhamadou Sane one-v-one for his sixth goal of the season.
A defensive miscue by the Wildcats led to the Eagles' second goal as
Marcus Starke applied heavy pressure in the offensive third. The freshman stole the ball from a Johnson & Wales defender inside the penalty box and made a solid touch over Sane's body for the goal, giving the Eagles the 2-0 lead at the half.
The Eagles attempted two shots in the period, each finding the mark while the defense kept Johnson & Wales in check, not allowing a single shot.
The Wildcats came out attacking hard in the second half, with three solid looks in the early going, but the Eagles' defense stood tall and goalkeeper
Nils Carlson made a tough save to preserve the shutout.
The Blue and Gold were able to catch JWU in transition and force a corner kick. A header by
Jacob Stevenback off the set piece, was turned away, but
Erik Norburg was able to corral the ball and cross the field to the feet of Petersson. The junior midfielder sent a cross into the box from the right side where
Frankie Arias headed the ball into the upper 90 for his first career goal.
Eagle forward
Veit Couturier netted his 14
th goal of the season with a minute to play. Following a throw-in,
Max Hausman threaded the ball between two defenders, finding Couturier who sent the ball across the face of the goal, just inside the right post giving the Eagles the 4-0 win.
For the game the Eagles held a 12-3 advantage in shots, including a commanding 10-3 mark in the second half. Embry-Riddle also dominated with shots on frame, tallying six to Johnson & Wales one.
ALL-TIME SERIES DOMINANCE
The Eagles own a 4-0 record all-time against JWU, all shutouts, including wins of 14-0 (twice) and 16-0. The Blue and Gold has outscored the Wildcats 48-0 over the last four seasons.
Ryan Maloney leads all Eagles with nine goals against the Wildcats, including six in 2009, which tied the program record for goals in a contest. Couturier and Gudnason each have scored four goals against JWU in two games against the Wildcats.
V EQUALS VICTORY
In the Eagles' last game, all three of Embry-Riddle's goals came from players with V-names:
Viktor Gudnason and
Veit Couturier (Northwood's lone goal also came from a Victor). The Eagles are 15-5 when Versace Couturier scores and 6-1 when he scores more than once.
90 MINUTE MEN
Only two Eagles have played in every minute (360) of Embry-Riddle's matches in 2013: goalkeeper
Nils Carlson and defender
Alan Vezza. Defender
Ally MacDonald has played 352 minutes as a senior while fellow defender
Tobias Gerber has appeared in 348 minutes of action. Carlson's 3,718 career minutes puts him fifth all-time in Embry-Riddle history.
IMPORTANCE OF 2-0
Under Dave Gregson, the Eagles have started 2-0 in conference play eight times, with five of those seasons (2003, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2011) ending in regular season league championships.
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 222-119-25 record through 20 seasons of play gives him a .639 winning percentage.
