Men's Soccer Hosts No. 6 West Virginia Tuesday at Emmitt Field

#6 West Virginia (5-0-3, 1-0-1 BSC) at Bucknell (4-3-1, 2-0-1 PL)
When: Tuesday, Oct. 1, 6 p.m.
Where: Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium, Lewisburg, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: BucknellBison.com

Bucknell at a Glance

After moving into sole possession of first place in the Patriot League with a 1-0 away win at American on Saturday night, the Bison step away from league play to host unbeaten and sixth-ranked West Virginia on Tuesday night at Emmitt Field. This will be WVU's first-ever trip to Lewisburg in men's soccer.
Sophomore David Krumov's first career goal just over nine minutes into the match was all the Bison would need in the win at American. Krumov intercepted a pass from the goalkeeper, broke into the box and beat the keeper 1v1 for the game's only goal.
The Bison were stellar defensively, allowing only eight total shots and just two on frame. Most of the action near goalkeeper Freddie Lapworth came late in the match when the Eagles pushed numbers forward. The Bison held strong in the back, even after going down to 10 men when Jackson Sullivan was issued a second yellow card with 12 minutes remaining.
Lapworth earned his second straight Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week award on Monday. He now leads the Patriot League in shutouts (4) and goals-against average (1.00) while ranking second in save percentage (.784).
As a team, the Bison have conceded only eight goals in eight matches this season, with six of those confined to two games against Cornell and Saint Francis.
Sullivan saw his consecutive minutes streak end at 2,373 on Monday. The last time he didn't go the full 90 was at Syracuse late in the 2022 season.
Bucknell's seven points through three Patriot League match days are one more than Lehigh (2-1). The Mountain Hawks will be at Emmitt Field on Saturday. Colgate (1-0-2) is third on five points, and then five other teams are next with four.
Bucknell's seven goals this season have come from seven different players. Jack Lucas is the points leader with five on a goal and three assists, and Krumov has a goal and two assists.
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.
Cade McGrath, Drew Roskos, and Ben Sheffield also have goals.
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.

West Virginia at a Glance

The Mountaineers are still unbeaten through eight games at 5-0-3. They were ranked sixth in the most recent United Soccer Coaches poll after being ranked No. 1 earlier in the season.
After a 4-0 start, West Virginia has tied three of its last four. Most recently, WVU and Kentucky played a scoreless draw in Morgantown on Friday. That was a Big South Conference matchup as WVU and Kentucky both play in that league as associate members.
Coach Dan Stratford's team is coming off a school-record 17-win season (17-3-4) and its first-ever trip to the NCAA College Cup. After falling to No. 1 Marshall 3-2 in the Big South championship game, West Virginia fired off NCAA wins over Louisville, Vermont, and Loyola Marymount before falling 1-0 to eventual national champion Clemson in the national semifinals.
Sergio Ors Navarro leads the attack with eight goals, which are fourth-most in the nation. Simon Carlson has four goals and four assists, and Marcus Caldeira, the Sun Belt Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, has three goals. All told, WVU has 18 goals in eight matches while conceding only six.
Marc Bonnaire has played nearly every minute in goal and has a 0.77 GAA in eight starts. He has only been called upon for 14 saves, as West Virginia's opponents are only averaging 6.0 shot attempts per game.

The Bucknell-West Virginia Series

Bucknell is 0-2 all-time against the Mountaineers, falling 1-0 in 2006 and 2-0 last season. Both games were played in Morgantown.
Both of WVU's goals came in the second half in last year's matchup at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. After both teams were limited to one shot in the first half, Marcus Caldera broke the deadlock nine minutes into the second. Yutaro Tsukada added a second on a header in the 74th minute.
In that 2006 meeting, Paul Cunningham scored the game's lone goal midway through the first half. The goal came off a corner kick delivery from Dan Stratford, who is now the WVU head coach. Joey Kuterbach made six saves in goal that night for the Bison, who would go on to win the Patriot League championship and defeat George Mason in the first round of the NCAA Tournament later that season.

Next Up

The Bison return to Patriot League play on Saturday against Lehigh at 7 p.m. at Emmitt Field. The Mountain Hawks are 3-6-1 on the season but have won two of their last three, including a 3-1 win over Boston University on Saturday.

Men's Soccer Hosts No. 6 West Virginia Tuesday at Emmitt Field

Next Event

Players Mentioned

David Krumov

Freddie Lapworth

Jack Lucas

Cade McGrath

Drew Roskos

Ben Sheffield

Jackson Sullivan

Cohen Weaver

Cade Whitmire

Men's Soccer Hosts No. 6 West Virginia Tuesday at Emmitt Field

Next Event

Players Mentioned

David Krumov

Freddie Lapworth

Jack Lucas

Cade McGrath

Drew Roskos

Ben Sheffield

Jackson Sullivan

Cohen Weaver

Cade Whitmire

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