Game #12 vs. Saint Francis U (NEC)
Info: Sunday, Oct. 15, Syracuse, N.Y., Ted Grant Field; 1:00 p.m. kickoff
Watch: NEC Front Row … Live Stats: lemoynedolphins.com
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Saint Francis links: Schedule | Roster | News | Stats

Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne men's soccer team will host unbeaten Saint Francis (4-0-5, 2-0-1 NEC) on Sunday at Ted Grant Field for a Northeast Conference matchup.

The match will kickoff at 1:00 p.m., and will be streamed on NEC Front Row.

Along with supporting the Dolphins, members of the Le Moyne community are encouraged to donate to the Central New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (CNY SPCA) during the afternoon. Check out the organization's wish list here.

Last Time Out:
The Dolphins most recently squared off against Stony Brook, which sits at the top of the CAA Standings with a 4-0-2 conference record. In what was the final non-conference battle of the season for Le Moyne, the Dolphins and the Seawolves each scored two second half goals and the Wednesday evening match ended in a 3-3 draw.

Le Moyne scored first in the fourth minute, the second time this season that they've taken a 1-0 within the first five minutes of a match, when redshirt-sophomore forward Jakob Priestman (Leek, England/Westwood/Missouri State) put away his first collegiate goal on a rebound attempt following a great strike from redshirt-sophomore midfielder Ziad Abdul-Malak (Manlius, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) that hit the left post.

Abdul-Malak was credited with his first career assist on the play.

The Seawolves tied the game in the 40^th minute, then took a 2-1 lead less than 10 minutes into the second half.

The Dolphins equalized for the first time in the 56^th minute when redshirt-junior defender Jack Goodrich (Kelsall, England/King's School Chester) drew a penalty kick then converted the shot himself with a left-footed rocket into the upper right corner of the goal.

After Stony Brook went back ahead with a penalty kick of their own, Le Moyne tied the game in the 67^th minute when Goodrich sent a free kick from the right side of the field to the near post where Abdul-Malak flicked a header past the goalkeeper and into the left side of the net.

Goodrich and Abdul-Malak each recorded a career-best three points during the match.

Goodrich currently leads the Dolphins in both goals and assists with three in each category.

Le Moyne sophomore goalkeeper Matthew Gera (Jamesville, N.Y./Jamesville-DeWitt) made his fifth start of the season on Wednesday and recorded four saves, including an impressive point-blank stop in the 84^th minute that prevented the Seawolves from taking a 4-3 lead.

Wednesday's match marked the fourth time this season that the Dolphins erased a second-half deficit to record a draw on the road.

Le Moyne's match at Stony Brook was the team's final contest in a four-game road swing. The Dolphins will compete at Ted Grant Field on Sunday for the first time since September 24.

NEC Play:
During Le Moyne's most recent conference match at FDU on October 5, the Dolphins fell to the defending NEC champs by a score of 2-0. Both sides recorded 12 shots during the match, but Le Moyne had the advantage in shots on goal by a tally of 8-4.

On the first day of October, Le Moyne captured the program's first-ever Northeast Conference victory against Central Connecticut State by a score of 3-2.

Goodrich provided the assist on redshirt-junior forward Noah Sperduto's winning goal during that match, while sophomore midfielder Cameron Stuart (Fulton, N.Y./G. Ray Bodley) registered his first goal of the season and freshman forward Felix Ludemann (Wrestedt, Germany/Herzog-Ernst-Gymnasium Uelzen) tallied the second goal of his rookie campaign.

Goodrich recorded a career-best two assists against the Blue Devils, while freshman forward Kjell Knaak (Aukrug, Germany/Schule Hohe Geest) provided his first collegiate assist and senior midfielder David Bosak (Marcellus, N.Y./Marcellus/Onondaga C.C.) contributed his first assist as a Dolphin.

Le Moyne recorded a 2-2 draw against Stonehill during its NEC debut on September 24. Abdul-Malak and graduate defender Ben Quigley (Perth, Scotland/Community School of Auchterarder/University of Stirling) each recorded their first career goal against the Skyhawks.

The Dolphins are averaging 2.0 goals over their last six games, and they have increased their season shots per game average to 10.4.

Ludemann has taken a team-high 19 shots this season, with 11 shots on target, while Goodrich has put 12 of his 17 total shots on target. Graduate midfielder Luca Nicastro (Ottawa, Ontario/Nepean/St. Bonaventure), who has provided two goals and one assist so far this season, is third on the team in shots with 16.

Le Moyne currently has the best shots on goal percentage among all NEC teams at 0.561, compared to 0.435 for its opponents.

Scouting the Red Flash:
Saint Francis is led by first-year head coach Mads Kaiser, who spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons as an assistant on the SFU coaching staff.

Last season the Red Flash went 3-2-3 in conference play and earned the No. 5 seed in the NEC Tournament where they suffered a 1-0 defeat to fourth-seeded Sacred Heart in the first round.

During his freshman campaign in 2022, SFU goalkeeper Jordaine Jaeger was named NEC Rookie of the Year after starting 16 games for the Red Flash and tallying five shutouts with 75 saves.

So far this season, the sophomore goalkeeper from Munich is second among NEC goalkeepers in shutouts (4), first in goals against average (0.80) and second in save percentage (0.794).

As a team, Saint Francis is the only squad in the NEC with a goals against average below 1.00, as the Red Flash have only allowed eight goals through nine games.

Freshman midfielder Joschi Schelb currently leads SFU in points with two goals and four assists, while freshman forward Álvaro Planas has recorded a team-best three goals through nine starts.

Junior defenders Torren Aikens and Dallan Schoenberger along with 2022 NEC All-Rookie Team selection Julian Jakopovic have each played every minute of every Saint Francis match so far this season.

Saint Francis recorded a 1-0 win over Bucknell in its penultimate non-conference match, then the Red Flash began NEC play with a 1-0 over Stonehill as Jakopovic put away the match winner in the 78^th minute.

SFU battled to a 1-1 draw at home against FDU on October 1, then they bested Central Connecticut State at home by a score of 1-0 on October 8. Aikens and Schoenberger assisted on Planas' match-winning goal against CCSU.

During their season opener on August 24, the Red Flash registered a 2-1 win over Canisius. The Dolphins traveled to Canisius on September 27 and recorded a 2-2 draw against the Golden Griffins.

Sunday will be the first ever meeting between Le Moyne and Saint Francis in men's soccer.

NEC Standings:
FDU (5-2-4, 2-0-2 NEC) is currently at the top of the conference standings with eight points, while Saint Francis and Merrimack (4-4-2, 2-1-1 NEC) are tied for second with seven points each.
LIU (4-4-3, 1-0-2 NEC), Sacred Heart (4-6-2, 1-1-2 NEC) and Stonehill (2-6-4, 1-2-2 NEC) each have five points, while Le Moyne (1-5-5, 1-1-1 NEC) is in seventh place with four points.
CCSU has one point in conference play, and Howard is currently 0-3 against NEC opponents.

Looking Ahead:
Following Sunday's match against the Red Flash, Le Moyne will host Merrimack on Thursday at 3:00 p.m. at Ted Grant Field. The Dolphins will then play back-to-back road conference matches against Howard (October 22) and LIU (October 29). Le Moyne will conclude the regular season with a home match against Sacred Heart on November 2.