MONMOUTH MEN'S SOCCER PREVIEW
 
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Monmouth (5-8-2, 2-4-1 MAAC) at Fairfield (8-4-2, 4-1-2 MAAC)
All-Time Series: Monmouth leads, 5-0-4
Location: Fairfield, CT
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Live Video: https://flyhawks.co/2i0Ticc
Live Stats: https://flyhawks.co/2yJCkH6
   
The Monmouth University men's soccer team looks to win its second straight game when it travels to Fairfield on Wednesday, four days after defeating MAAC opponent Saint Peter's at home, 3-1. Sophomore Donovan Pollock, freshman Anes Mrkulic, and senior Jake Areman all scored in the win over the Peacocks, as the Hawks moved to 2-4-1 in the conference. They will travel to Fairfield on Wednesday looking for three more points, and will have just two more regular season games following the match. Areman now leads the team with nine points on three goals and three assists. Following Wednesday's match, the Hawks will return home for the final two regular season games against Quinnipiac and Niagara.
 
BREAKING DOWN THE FAIRFIELD STAGS
Fairfield is currently situated at fourth in the conference with a 4-1-2 record. The Stags have defeated Quinnipiac, Marist, Saint Peter's, and Manhattan, and their lone loss came against Canisius on September 30. The two ties came against Siena and Iona. Senior forward Ben Wignall leads the team with 11 points, scoring four goals with three assists. Freshman forward Don Junior-Bobe leads the team with five goals and is second on the team with 10 total points. Freshman goalkeeper Gordon Botterill has started 11 games in net this season, making 41 saves and giving up 11 goals. He has registered a 7-2-2 overall record.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. FAIRFIELD
The Hawks are undefeated in nine career games against the Stags, registering a 5-0-4 all-time record. Last season in West Long Branch, the Hawks earned the 2-0 win behind goals from Jalil Blalock and Michael Luke.

YOU GET THE POINT
Twelve different Monmouth players have registered a point this season, led by Jake Areman (three goals, three assists), John Antunes (two goals, three assists), and Colin Stripling (three goals, one assist). Sophomore midfielder Geoffrey Schaefer increased his season total to five points after tallying a goal and an assist in the win over Iona on October 4. Sophomore back Andy Martinez has also totaled five points, as he shares the team lead for assists (3) with freshman Dan Frisch-Harmon, Areman, and Antunes.

SPREADING THE LOVE
Nine different Monmouth athletes have scored goals in 2017, including Colin Stripling, Jake Areman, Andy Martinez, Geoffrey Schaefer, Zachary Pereira, Anes Mrkulic, John Antunes, Luke Bromley, and Donovan Pollock.

SUPER STRIPLING
Redshirt senior Colin Stripling was the lone Monmouth student-athlete named to the Preseason All-MAAC Team, and he enjoys the honor for the second consecutive season. Battling through injury a season ago, Stripling scored four goals in 11 games while racking up 26 shots. He was named to the All-MAAC Second Team for those efforts, a year after being named to the All-MAAC First team after scoring six goals and dishing five assists in 2015. Before sustaining a season-ending injury in 2014, Stripling earned MAAC All-Rookie honors during his freshman year after starting 18 games. Stripling scored the game-winning diving header in the season-opening win over Georgia Southern on August 25, and was named MAAC Offensive Player of the Week on September 25 after scoring two goals in the 3-1 win over Hartford.

NON-CONFERENCE CHALLENGES
The Hawks played an arduous non-conference slate in 2017, recording a 3-4-1 record after eight games. Monmouth played #14 West Virginia to a 0-0 draw on September 4 and fell to #25 UMass Lowell in the 89^th minute, 3-2. On September 26, the Columbia Lions entered the United Soccer Coaches Poll at #23, two weeks after the Hawks narrowly fell to them, 2-1. Monmouth also played tough road contests at College of Charleston and Georgia Southern, and defeated Hartford and Penn at home. The Hawks were defeated in overtime by 2014 College Cup semifinalist UMBC in West Long Branch on September 9 by a score of 2-1.

AMAZING AREMAN
Through the first 15 games of the season, senior Jake Areman leads the team with nine points on threegoals and three assists. Areman scored the go-ahead goal against UMBC on September 9, and also scored Monmouth's first goal at #25 UMass Lowell on September 16 on a perfectly placed free kick. Joining the Hawks ahead of the 2016 season, Areman has started all 32 games, accumulating four goals and seven assists in that span.

HERE'S JOHNNY
After missing all of last season due to injury, redshirt freshman John Antunes has started 14 games for the Hawks in the midfield this season. Antunes consistently controls the middle of the field, and scored his first career tally against Hartford on September 20. The Fairfield, NJ native took the pass from teammate Santo Arena, dribbled down the middle of the field, and launched a rocket to right upper 90 to put the Hawks up 1-0. Antunes scored his second goal in the win over Iona on October 4.

FRESHMAN CONNECTION
Trailing 2-1 with 25 minutes to play at #25 UMass Lowell on September 16, freshman Santo Arena collected a turnover and passed it ahead to freshman Anes Mrkulic. Mrkulic poked it under the goalkeeper for his first career goal and Arena's first career assist to tie the game at two.

SANTO'S START
After dishing his first career assist at #25 UMass Lowell on September 16, freshman Santo Arena earned his first career start against Hartford four days later. The midfielder made the most of it, assisting on the first goal of the game from John Antunes. Monmouth later won the match 3-1.

IRONMAN EDWARDS
Monmouth junior goalkeeper Bobby Edwards has started all 15 games this season, making 67 saves and earning five wins. He has made eight saves three times this season, and also stopped six shots at Columbia. Edwards earned his third shutout just four games into the season.

UNUSUAL UNDERDOGS
For the first time since 2005, a Rob McCourt-led Monmouth team was not selected as preseason conference favorites. Instead, the Hawks were tabbed third behind Quinnipiac and Rider after a 6-9-3 record in 2016. McCourt has led the Hawks to a 153-66-50 record since his inaugural 2004 season.
 
THE GOLD STANDARD
Monmouth Head Coach Robert McCourt's teams have won nine conference regular season titles in his 13 years directing the program. Included in the Hawks' run of success are five conference tournament championships in the last 11 years and the accompanying NCAA Tournament berths.

RETURNING CAST
Monmouth will return 12 letterwinners from last season, led by Preseason All-MAAC selection Colin Stripling. Senior Jake Areman will also return to the fold after tallying six points (one goal, four assists) during his first year in Blue & White. Sophomore Geoff Schaefer, junior Jalil Blalock, and sophomore Michael Luke will all return after scoring two goals each last season. Junior Zachary Pereira also returns after earning All-MAAC Second Team honors in 2016, in addition to sophomore defender Andy Martinez who was named to the MAAC All-Rookie team. Senior Joey Gudzak is back on the Monmouth defense after being one of two players to start all 18 games last season, while classmate Andrew Gee takes the field with 53 career games and five goals under his belt. After sustaining a season-ending injury in the first game of the regular season in 2016, the 2015 NJ Gatorade High School Player of the Year John Antunes will look to make a lasting impact in the midfield.

NUMEROUS NEWCOMERS
The Hawks welcome 12 new players in West Long Branch this fall, including six freshmen and four transfers. Juniors Bobby Edwards, Luke Bromley, and Henrique Joaquim are joined by sophomore Doni Pollock as 2017 transfers. Edwards enjoyed a lot of success as a goalkeeper at St. Joseph's University, the England native Bromley comes from Florida Southern College, and the Brazil native Joaquim comes from Brevard College. Pollock, a striker, played one year at Old Dominion and contributed two goals in 15 games. Sophomore George Akampeke also joined the fold from Bolgatanga, Ghana, and will play primarily in the midfield. The freshman class includes forward Anes Mrkulic, goalkeeper Sean Murray, midfielder Santo Arena, midfielder Jake Treiber, forward Alex Hajj, and midfielder Dan Frisch-Harmon.
 
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