STANDISH, ME – Second-seeded Saint Joseph's College (10-7-1, 6-3 GNAC) will host #7 Albertus Magnus College (5-9-2, 2-5-2 GNAC) in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Soccer Tournament Quarterfinal on Sunday at Westerlea Way Field. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 PM.
The last time we met:
Saint Joseph's edged Albertus Magnus – the reigning GNAC Champions – by a 2-1 score at home on September 28th. Freshman Yanni Rakis (Belfast, Maine) and senior Kyle Shangraw (Westbrook, Maine) both scored for the Monks with Jason Wade (South Hampton, N.H.) and Dan McIntyre (Sparta, N.J.) earning assists. Freshman forward Erik Tomin (Hamden, Conn.) potted the lone Albertus goal, an unassisted marker, that day.
In goal, sophomore Scott Benner (Post Falls, Idaho) endured a mostly quiet afternoon with only two saves while his counterpart, Falcons' senior keeper Donato Piroscafo (Naugatuck, Conn.) kept his side in the match by making eight stops in a losing effort.
Saint Joseph's held a 19-9 shots advantage while the conference rivals were awarded three corner kicks apiece on the afternoon.
What have you done lately?
The Monks enter the tournament having lost three straight – all conference losses - for the first time all season. St. Joe's was held without a goal in all three matches and has not found the back of the net in nearly 280 minutes of play. The scoreless string began with a 4-0 loss at Johnson & Wales University on October 19th and continued with a 2-0 setback against Mount Ida College on October 24th and a 3-0 loss at Lasell College two days later. The trio of conference opponents combined to post a 17-4-6 GNAC record and all three earned a top-five seed in the conference tournament.
Following the 2-1 loss to the Monks, the Falcons opened October with three-consecutive victories, including impressive wins over Western Connecticut State and Coast Guard Academy, but the perennial GNAC contender posted just one victory – a 1-0 triumph over Anna Maria College on October 19th – in the team's final five regular-season match-ups. However, Albertus Magnus did manage to secure at least a tie with Mount Ida and Johnson & Wales during the final two weeks of the season.
Historically speaking:
The Monks' 2-1 triumph over the Falcons in late September was the side's first against Albertus Magnus since 2009. The victory snapped a four-game losing streak versus the Falcons and improved the Monks' all-time record against their conference-counterpart to 3-5. These two programs first met in the fall of 2007 when Saint Joseph's first entered the Great Northeast Athletic Conference.
The Falcons have outscored the Monks by an 11-7 in the seven meetings. The most goals scored by either club in a head to head matchup occurred on September 19th, 2009 when Saint Joseph's defeated Albertus Magnus, 3-0, at Westerlea Way Field.
Who to watch:
Shangraw, one of the most dynamic players in the conference if not the region, ranks second in the conference in both goals (13) and points (32) and leads the GNAC with five game-winning goals. A two-time ECAC New England Offensive Player of the Week honoree, Shangraw is very much one of the keys to the Monks' playoff success – Saint Joseph's is 8-1-1 when he scores this fall.
Senior Fabrice Iraduha (Portland, Maine) is in the midst of his most successful season with six goals and 13 total points and senior Zach Johnson (Westbrook, Maine) – a two-time All-GNAC honoree – has tallied two goals and four assists for eight total points this year. Freshmen Rakis and Victor Santos (Framingham, Mass.) have also provided a spark for Saint Joseph's this fall.
Freshman Alexis Garcia (West Haven, Conn.) leads the Albertus Magnus offensive attack with six goals and 15 total points while senior Ross Suleski (Amesbury, Mass.) has registered four goals and four assists for 12 points this season. Piroscafo, a two-time First Team All-GNAC selection and 2012 First Team All-New England honoree, owns a 1.10 goals against average with four shutouts as a senior. He has made 81 saves with 18 goals allowed over 1478 minutes in goal for an .822 save percentage.
