MONMOUTH MEN'S SOCCER PREVIEW

Friday, August 25, 2017
Monmouth (0-0-0, 0-0-0 MAAC) vs. Georgia Southern (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Sun Belt)
All-Time Series: First meeting
Location: Soccer Stadium at Patriots Point – Mt. Pleasant, SC
Kickoff: 5 p.m.
Live Video: None
Live Stats: http://flyhawks.co/2xcqlAE
 
Sunday, August 27, 2017
Monmouth (0-0-0, 0-0-0 MAAC) vs. College of Charleston (0-0-0, 0-0-0 CAA)
All-Time Series: Monmouth leads, 1-0; Last Meeting: 9/16/12, MU won 1-0
Location: Soccer Stadium at Patriots Point – Mt. Pleasant, SC
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m.
Live Video: http://flyhawks.co/2wF1qbj
Live Stats: http://flyhawks.co/2xcqlAE
 
 
The Monmouth University men's soccer team opens the 2017 season with a pair of road contests in Mt. Pleasant, SC. First up is Georgia Southern on Friday, followed by host College of Charleston on Sunday. Monmouth will then return to West Long Branch for its first home game on Friday, September 1 against Penn.
 
BREAKING DOWN THE GEORGIA SOUTHERN EAGLES
Monmouth will open its 2017 campaign against Georgia Southern University for the first-ever meeting between the teams. The game will be played at College of Charleston's Soccer Stadium at Patriots Point as part of the Aaron Olitsky Memorial Soccer Classic. The Eagles finished last season with an 8-8-3 record, finishing second in the Sun Belt conference with a 3-1-1 record. Georgia Southern fell in the Sun Belt Championship to Georgia State, 2-0. The team returns senior forward Blake Wilson, who led the team with eight goals and 18 points last season and was named to the 2016 All-Sun Belt Conference First Team. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Torgeir Fjaer earned 15 starts last season, registering a 6-6-3 overall record. The Eagles were picked second in the 2017 Sun Belt Preseason Poll, while junior defender Emil Laursen claimed Sun Belt Conference Preseason Defensive Player of the Year honors.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. GEORGIA SOUTHERN
Friday's match will be the first in the all-time series vs. Georgia Southern. The Hawks have a 2-2 record against current members of the Sun Belt, having only played Hartwick and Howard.

BREAKING DOWN THE COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON COUGARS
The Cougars finished with the same record as the Hawks last season at 6-9-3, eventually falling in the CAA Semifinals to Delaware. Senior goalkeeper Kevin Shields returns in 2017, having started 13 games last season with a 3-5-3 record. The College loses its leading scorer from last season in Nico Rittmeyer, who netted four. Senior forward Leland Archer started all 18 games last season, scoring two goals and adding two assists.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON
The Hawks will take on the College of Charleston for the second time, and the first since #19 Monmouth earned the 1-0 win in 2012. Monmouth scored off a header in the 23rd minute, and senior goalkeeper (now Assistant Coach) Alex Blackburn registered a two-save shutout.
 
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 150-61-49 (.671) record since his inaugural 2004 season.
 
^{Preseason Conference Poll under Rob McCourt}

2017: 3rd	2010: 1st
2016: 1st	2009: 1st
2015: 1st	2008: 1st
2014: 1st	2007: 1st
2013: 1st	2006: 1st
2012: 1st	2005: 4th
2011: 1st	2004: 9th

 
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.

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.

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.
 
ERIC KLENOFSKY DRAFTED BY D.C. UNITED
Following the 2016 season, former goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky was selected 34th overall in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft by D.C. United. Klenofsky became the eighth Monmouth student-athlete selected by an MLS team and the sixth in the last seven years, following Matt Jeffrey (No. 78, Colorado), Bryan Meredith (No. 29, Seattle), Ryan Kinne (No. 42, New England), RJ Allen (No. 43, Chivas USA) and Ryan Clark (No. 39, New York Red Bulls), and the seventh overall, also joining Hugh MacDonald and Tom Gray. Klenofsky garnered multiple accolades throughout his four years in West Long Branch, most recently being named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) First Team All-Northeast Region Team for the second consecutive season. His 36 career wins are the second-most in conference history, and he ends his Monmouth career with 32 shutouts. Klenofsky earned All-MAAC Second Team in 2013 and 2014, before elevating to the First Team and being named MAAC Goalkeeper of the Year in 2015. He was the 2013 and 2014 NCAA Division I Statistical Champion in goals-against average.