Saturday, September 28
Germantown, Md. (Maryland SoccerPlex)
7 p.m.
Bucknell University
at
American
Photo by: Ben Popko
Men's Soccer Visits American Saturday at Maryland SoccerPlex
9/26/2024 4:51:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Bucknell (3-3-1, 1-0-1 PL) at American (2-2-4. 1-0-1 PL)
When:Â Saturday, Sept. 28, 7 p.m. Â
Where:Â Maryland SoccerPlex, Boyds, Md.
Streaming:Â ESPN+
Live Stats:Â AUEagles.com
Bucknell at a Glance
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When:Â Saturday, Sept. 28, 7 p.m. Â
Where:Â Maryland SoccerPlex, Boyds, Md.
Streaming:Â ESPN+
Live Stats:Â AUEagles.com
Bucknell at a Glance
- The Bison have a win over Navy and a draw with Holy Cross in two Patriot League matches thus far, and on Saturday they hit the road for the first time in league play to face American. Bucknell and American are two of the five teams currently atop the table with four points, and two others have three.
- American's home field is undergoing renovations this fall, so the Eagles are playing their home games at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md.
- The Bison have been idle since last Saturday's scoreless draw with Holy Cross. Freddie Lapworth made six saves en route to the clean sheet, and he was named Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week on Monday.
- Bucknell's wins have come against Robert Morris, Mount St. Mary's, and Navy.
- Cohen Weaver and Cade Whitmire both registered a goal and an assist in the 2-1 win over the Midshipmen in the Patriot League opener. Weaver (Penn State) and Whitmire (Tulsa) are both transfers in their first year at Bucknell, and both recorded their first collegiate points in the victory.
- Weaver was recognized as the Patriot League Midfielder of the Week following that win. He set up Whitmire's opening goal in the 12th minute, and then eight minutes later he scored himself on a beautiful redirect to the top corner off a low cross in from Jack Lucas.
- Lucas has three assists and five points on the season. His three assists are second-most in the Patriot League, one behind Beaux Lizewski of Lafayette.
- The Bison have six goals, coming from six different players. Lucas, Weaver, Whitmire, Cade McGrath, Drew Roskos, and Ben Sheffield have all found the back of the net. David Krumov has a pair of assists.
- Dave Brandt is Bucknell's 14th full-time head coach and just the third dating back to 1967. Brandt, who is now in his third season at Bucknell, brought with him a remarkable career record of 354-86-40 in stints at Messiah, Navy, and Hope. Brandt won six Division III national championships at Messiah and led Navy to the 2013 Patriot League title and an NCAA Tournament first-round win.        Â
- The Eagles were picked third behind Loyola and Boston University in the Patriot League preseason poll after finishing 6-5-5 overall and 3-3-3 in the Patriot League last season. American was the No. 6 seed in the Patriot League Tournament and fell at Lafayette in penalty kicks in the quarterfinal round.
- This year's squad started 0-2-3 before posting back-to-back wins over Loyola (2-0) and UMBC (4-3). Most recently, American drew 1-1 at Colgate last Saturday.
- After scoring only two goals in its first five matches of the season, American has seven in its last three. Troy Elgersma has produced goals in both Patriot League games, and Mustapha Sowe recorded a brace against UMBC. They lead the team with two goals each, while Sam Hershey, Ethan Boyle, Cooper Nunn, and Nicholas Shirley have one goal apiece.
- Matthew Tibbetts has played every minute in goal and has three shutouts, 36 saves, and 10 goals against in eight starts.
- Boyle was selected as the Patriot League Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, and he was joined by Nunn, Hershey, and Zemi Rodriguez on the Preseason All-PL Team.
- Bucknell is 8-17-4 in 29 all-time clashes with the Eagles. After a 2-0-2 stretch for the Bison from 2017 through the spring of 2021, American won two straight meetings by 2-1 scorelines before the two teams played a wild 3-3 tie last season at Emmitt Field.
- In last year's matchup in Lewisburg, Zane Domsohn's running header on an 84th-minute corner kick helped the Bison rescue the 3-3 draw. The other big highlight of the day was the first career goal for then-senior Brennan Gac. That gave the Bison a 2-1 lead in the 39th minute, but Sam Hershey and Dilane Zouantcha scored early in the second half to put the Eagles on top.
- In the last meeting in D.C. in 2022, Cade McGrath scored his first collegiate goal for the Bison, but American equalized through Evan Schweikert just before halftime and won it on a Jack Green goal in the 74th minute.
- Bucknell's lone victory in the abbreviated spring 2021 season was a 2-1 verdict against the eventual league champs. Patrick O'Hara headed in Matt Thorsheim's corner kick 11 minutes into the match to stake the Bison to a 1-0 lead. David Coly converted a penalty kick for American five minutes later, but in the 54th minute, Trevor Wiggins headed in Colin Eifert's long throw for the winning goal.
- Bucknell has not had much luck on American's home field with a 1-12-1 record dating back to the first meeting in 1996, so the Bison will not be disappointed to play this one at the Maryland SoccerPlex. Bucknell's lone win in D.C. was a 1-0 verdict in 2004, and the Bison also managed a 1-1 draw in 2018.
- These two teams have met five times in the Patriot League Tournament, with Bucknell winning three, including back-to-back championship-game victories in 2009 and 2010. Bucknell defeated the Eagles 1-0 in the 2009 final in Lewisburg, and a year later the Bison prevailed 2-0 in a game played at Colgate. Brendan Burgdorf collected the only goal in the 2009 title match, and Ross Liberati scored both goals in the 2010 contest. Bucknell also won 3-1 at home in the quarterfinal round in 2013.Â
- Bucknell has two home matches next week, including a date with No. 6 West Virginia on Tuesday evening. The Mountaineers are 5-0-2 on the season heading into a Sun Belt Conference matchup with Kentucky on Friday night in Morgantown.
- The Bison return to Patriot League play on Saturday, Oct. 5 against Lehigh at 7 p.m.
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