STANDISH, Maine – Top-seeded Saint Joseph's College (15-1-4, 8-0-1 GNAC) will host #2 Norwich University (12-4-3, 6-0-3 GNAC) in the 2016 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Soccer Tournament Championship Saturday at 1:00 PM at Westerlea Way Field.

THE BRACKET THUS FAR:

Saturday, October 29 - Quarterfinals

Game 1: #1 Saint Joseph's 4, #8 Mount Ida 0

Game 2: #4 Suffolk 2, #5 Albertus Magnus 0

Game 3: #3 JWU 3, #6 Emmanuel 0

Game 4: #2 Norwich 4, #7 Rivier 1

Tuesday, November 1 - Semifinals

Game 5: #1 Saint Joseph's 5, #4 Suffolk 1

Game 6: #2 Norwich 2, #3 Johnson & Wales 0

Saturday, November 5 - Championship

Game 7: #2 Norwich @ #1 Saint Joseph's, 1:00 PM

WHAT'S NEXT?

The winner of the GNAC Championship game earns an automatic berth into the 2016 NCAA DIII Men's Soccer Championship, which begins on Saturday, November 12th.

SEASON AT A GLANCE:

Saint Joseph's:

• The Monks have been the best defensive team in the conference this season with a minuscule 0.34 goals against average – the second-lowest mark in the nation – while outscoring opponents by a 40-7 margin through 20 matches
• Saint Joseph's also ranks fourth nationally in shutout percentage (70%), fourth in save percentage (.881), 13th in shots per game (21.05), 17th in shots on goal per game (9.90), and 18th in winning percentage (.850)
• St. Joe's outscored conference foes by an aggregate 18-1 score, with the lone goal allowed being an own-goal in a 2-1 win over Johnson & Wales on October 1st
• The Monks are currently riding a program record 18-game unbeaten streak, with the team's only blemish thus far being a 2-0 setback at the hands of University of New England on September 4th
• Along with the unbeaten streak, Saint Joseph's has established new team records for winning streak (10), shutouts (14), consecutive shutouts (8), and winning percentage

Norwich:

• The Cadets feature the top offense in the conference with GNAC-high totals in goals (46), assists (39), and points (131) while ranking second in shot percentage (.146) and shutouts (10), and third in shots (314), and shots per game (16.5)
• Norwich enters the championship game riding a nine-game unbeaten streak as the Cadets' last loss – a 3-2 overtime setback versus Plymouth State – took place on September 27th
• During the nine-game stretch, the Cadets have outscored opponents by a 23-1 margin with eight shutouts

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

Saint Joseph's:

• Sophomore forward Brett Mattos (Mahopac, N.Y.) leads the SJC offensive attack with six goals and six assists for 18 total points; five of his six strikes have been of the game-winning variety
• Junior Austin Bell (Gorham, Maine), who netted three goals in the Monks' quarterfinal win over Mount Ida, has six goals and 12 total points this fall
• With a balanced attack – 14 different players have scored at least one goal – the Monks have six others with three or more goals on the season: freshman Cody Elliott (Gorham, Maine), sophomore Kartikeya Swarup (Delhi, India), sophomore Dalton Gaumer (Corona, Calif.), junior Trevor Lopes (Cumberland, R.I.), senior Nicholas Borowski (Webster, Mass.), and freshman Noah Robinson (Wappingers Falls, N.Y.)
• Freshman midfielder JoJo Strobino (Clifton, N.J.) has the third-highest assists total (7) in the conference

Norwich:

• Senior forward Jacob Zimmerman (Litchfield, N.H.), a two-time GNAC Player of the Week selection, leads the conference in shots (76) and game-winning goals (5) and ranks second in the GNAC in goals (14) and points (32)
• Freshman forward Luke Gleadle (Gilbert, Ariz.) is second on the team in points (15) with five goals and five assists
• Sophomore forward Ethan Melia (Shrewsbury, Mass.) has tallied 14 points with six goals and two assists
• Senior midfielder Moab Schiers (South Weber, Utah) has contributed three goals with five assists and junior midfielder Colin Lozito (Wilmington, Vt.) heads into the title bout with 10 points (2G, 6A)

KEEPER COMPARISON:

Saint Joseph's: Sophomore Blake Mullen (Manchester, Conn.) is in the midst of one of the finest seasons ever recorded by a Saint Joseph's goalkeeper, with conference-leading numbers in goals against average (0.26), save percentage (.904), wins (15), and shutouts (12). The two-time GNAC Goalkeeper of the Week honoree currently ranks second in the nation in goals against average and third in save percentage.

Norwich: Senior Billy Whaley (Northfield, Vt.) is also enjoying a fantastic season and ranks fifth nationally in save percentage (.882) and eighth in goals against average (0.48) and sits behind Mullen on the GNAC leaderboard in wins (10) and shutouts (9). He has earned GNAC Goalkeeper of the Week accolades twice in the last three weeks.

ATTITUDE REFLECTS LEADERSHIP:

Saint Joseph's Head Coach Adrian Dubois, now in his third season at the helm, is 31-23-5 (.574) overall with a 17-9-1 (.654) record in conference play on the college sideline. The Monks have shown dramatic improvement since his first year (2014), when an injury-maligned club went 5-15 overall (3-6 GNAC), as St. Joe's went 11-7-1 with a 6-3 mark in GNAC play in 2015 en route to earning the #3 seed in the GNAC tourney before emerging as the top team in the conference this fall. Dubois played collegiately at University of New Hampshire, where he was a four-year starting midfielder.

Norwich Head Coach Adam Pfeifer guided the Cadets to the #2 seed in the GNAC tourney in his first season. Formerly an assistant at Middlebury College for two seasons and Associate Head Coach at Northeastern University, Pfeifer was a four-year starter at Boston College and remains among the Eagles' career scoring leaders.

THE LAST TIME WE MET:

The Cadets dealt the Monks their only conference blemish of the season when the teams played to a 0-0 tie in Northfield on October 15th. St. Joe's held a 21-8 shots advantage, but Whaley held the Monks' offense at bay with seven saves in the scoreless stalemate.

The SJC offense has come to life since the last time these teams met two weeks ago, as the Monks have outscored foes by a 15-1 margin over the last four contests. The Cadets have outscored opponents by a 12-1 aggregate score in five games since these two teams last met.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

Saint Joseph's is 7-4-2 all-time versus Norwich University and has outscored the Cadets by a narrow 18-15 margin over the 13-game series. Norwich has defeated St. Joe's just one time – the first-ever meeting between the teams on October 20th, 2007 – in seven meetings at Westerlea Way Field.

POSTSEASON HISTORY:

The Monks have advanced to the GNAC Tournament every season since the College joined the conference in the fall of 2007. St. Joe's is 10-7 in GNAC postseason play with GNAC Championships in 2009 and 2011, as the Monks defeated the Cadets by a 4-1 margin in the latter title bout.

The Cadets have won four GNAC Championships, with the last conference title coming in 2008 when Norwich defeated Saint Joseph's 1-0.

#GOMONKS

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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.