MONMOUTH MEN'S SOCCER PREVIEW
 

All-Time Series: First Meeting

Location: Hesse Field on The Great Lawn – West Long Branch, NJ

Kickoff: 7 p.m.

Live Video: ESPN3

Live Stats: MonmouthHawks.com

Sunday, August 28, 2016

All-Time Series: Tied, 1-1 (Last meeting: UML, 1-0 – Aug. 28, 2015)

Location: Hesse Field on The Great Lawn – West Long Branch, NJ

Kickoff: 1 p.m.

Live Video: None

Live Stats: MonmouthHawks.com

The Monmouth University men's soccer team opens the 2016 campaign with a pair of challenges at home. First up on Friday is #15 Denver, which advanced to the 2015 NCAA Tournament Second Round last season on the heels of an 18-game unbeaten streak. The Hawks round out the weekend with a Sunday tilt vs. UMass Lowell.  

BREAKING DOWN THE DENVER PIONEERS

Denver finished 15-1-3 last season, going the season's first 18 games without a loss to account for the nation's longest unbeaten streak (tied with Georgetown). Dating back to 2014, the Pioneers had gone 29 games without a loss. Denver returns nine starters from the only team in the nation to go undefeated in the 2015 regular season. The Pioneers' defense is led by 2015 MAC Hermann Trophy Semifinalist and 2016 Watch List honoree Reagan Dunk, who earned Summit League Defender of the Year and dished out a team-high eight assists last season. 2015 All-Summit League First Teamers Kortne Ford and Sam Hamilton also return to the fold on defense and in the midfield, respectively. The Pioneers had three players tie for the team lead in goals a year ago, with Karsten Hanlin and Andre Shinyashiki both returning after finishing first and second on the team with 14 and 12 points, respectively. One of two starters lost is 2015 Summit League Goalkeeper of the Year Dan Jackson, who posted a 0.40 goals-against average and a .833 save percentage last season. Nick Gardner redshirted last season after starting five matches in 2014 and posting a 0.58 GAA. Transfer James Bannon-Schneebeck saw action in two games in three years at San Francisco, while freshman Will Palmquist is the only other keeper on the roster.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. DENVER

Friday's match will be the first in the all-time series vs. Denver. Further, the Hawks have never faced a current member of the Summit League. 

BREAKING DOWN THE UMASS LOWELL RIVER HAWKS

UMass Lowell finished 2015 with a record of 7-9-1 (2-4-1 America East). The River Hawks are led by senior Wuilito Fernandes, who has led UML in scoring in each of the last two seasons, including a four-goal, three-assist effort in 2015. He was named to the America East All-Conference First Team and NSCAA All-East Region Second Team last year. Also back is fellow senior Guilherme Rodrigues, who finished second on the team with two goals, two assists and six points last season. Junior goalkeeper Austin Kroll has started every game for the River Hawks over the last two seasons. He posted a 1.09 GAA and a .712 save percentage in 2015.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. UMASS LOWELL

Sunday's match against UMass Lowell will mark the third meeting in the all-time series, all coming in the last three seasons. In 2014, the Hawks took a convincing 5-0 season-opening win in West Long Branch, before the River Hawks evened the series with a 1-0 decision in Lowell to open the 2015 slate.

SOLID COMPANY

Monmouth's 17-game unbeaten streak last season stood as the second-longest streak in the nation. Denver and Georgetown tied for the longest streak in the nation at 18 games, while Creighton and Stanford had their streaks snapped at 15 contests.  

Longest Unbeaten Streaks in NCAA Division I (2015)

	Team	Streak
1.	Denver	18
	Georgetown	18
2.	Monmouth	17
3.	Creighton	15
	Stanford	15
4.	Clemson	13
	LIU Brooklyn	13
5.	Wake Forest	12
	North Carolina	12

RUBBING ELBOWS WITH THE NATION'S BEST

A fixture in the national polls over the last several years, the Hawks are ranked No. 30 in the College Soccer News Preseason Top 30 to earn a national ranking for the 11th straight season. Monmouth reached a program-high of the No. 4 ranking in 2010.

PRESEASON RESPECT

Winners of two of the last three MAAC Regular Season Championships, Monmouth was selected to once again win the title by the MAAC's coaches. In addition, five Hawks comprised the 11-member Preseason All-MAAC Team. Goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky was named the Preseason Player of the Year, while Anderson Asiedu, David Nigro, Zachary Pereira and Colin Stripling were also named among the top players in the league.     

RETURN OF THE MAC

Sophomore Anderson Asiedu was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List, becoming the first sophomore and the 10th Hawk in Head Coach Robert McCourt's tenure to garner the honor. Asiedu joined Joseph Schmid (2013), Ryan Clark (2012), RJ Allen (2011), Max Hamilton (2011), Anthony Vazquez (2011), Ryan Kinne (2009, 2010), Bryan Meredith (2010), Chase Barbieri (2009) and Tom Gray (2007) among Monmouth players to earn the recognition.

THE GOLD STANDARD

Monmouth Head Coach Robert McCourt's teams have won nine conference regular season titles in his 12 years directing the program. Included in the Hawks' run of success are five conference tournament championships in the last 10 years and the accompanying NCAA Tournament berths.

KLENOFSKY CLIMBING MAAC ALL-TIME WINS LEADERBOARD

With the Hawks' 2-1 win in double overtime at Manhattan on Oct. 21, 2015, junior goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky moved into sole possession of second place all-time in the MAAC with 28 career victories in net. Klenofsky, who now stands at 31 career wins, moved past Niagara's John Fiutowski (2006-09) and only Iona's Nils Binstock (2006-09) remains ahead of the Hawks' junior goalkeeper with 38 career wins.    

RETURNING CAST

Monmouth returns the scorers of 30 of their 41 goals from a year ago, led by leading scorer Colin Stripling (6). Stripling also had five assists to lead the team with 17 points. David Nigro and Miguel Alves also scored five goals apiece, while Zachary Pereira came on strong to score four goals from the back line. Danny Figarella and Andrew Gee chipped in with three goals each, while Anderson Asiedu and Jalil Blalock scored twice each. Along with Pereira, center back Joey Gudzak helped stabilize the Hawks' back line and 2015 MAAC Goalkeeper of the Year Eric Klenofsky is back for his fourth season as the last line of defense. 

WELCOME TO THE SQUAD

Monmouth's newcomers include some exciting prospects, including Maryland transfer Jake Areman and 2015 Gatorade New Jersey Boys Soccer Player of the Year John Antunes. The back line lost Derek Luke, but brings a familiar look in Luke's brother, Michael, who will fill Derek's role. Fellow freshman Andy Martinez also looks to fill a pivotal role as a center back. Jacob Curtis, Colin Muller, Geoffrey Schaefer and Ryan Wells will also vie for minutes in their first year in the Blue & White.