Lakeland, Fla. – After having its last three games last week postponed due to the anticipation and aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, the Southeastern men's soccer team is set to resume Sun Conference play this week. Most recently, the Fire dropped its first two games of conference play on the road to Keiser University and Johnson & Wales University. With the losses, SEU fell to 0-5 in away games this season. The Fire now have the benefit of returning to its home pitch, where it is 15-6-3 since 2014.
GAME: Southeastern (3-7) vs. (4) Thomas University (10-0-1) Saturday 6:30 p.m.
COVERAGE: Thomas:
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VAN DER GOALS: Sophomore forward
Jake Van Der Luit has scored a goal in each of the team's last two contests. This was first time Van Der Luit had scored in back to back games since scoring in three straight postseason matches last season. With five goals, one assist, and 11 points totaled so far this season, he is the team's leading scorer. Four different players account for 80 percent of the Fire goals scored this season.
PREVIOUS THOMAS: The Fire shutout the Night Hawks 1-0 in 2015, which was the only time Thomas was held scoreless during the entire regular season.
Pedro Ivo Dias netted the lone goal of the game which was a flawless free kick that sliced to the left of both the wall and the keeper to find the back of the net. Thomas was the seventh ranked team at the time, making the victory the first for SEU over an NAIA Top 25 team in program history. The Night Hawks lead the Fire in the all-time series 6-1.
THE NIGHT HAWKS: After tying 18
th ranked Northwestern Ohio in its season opener, Thomas has rattled off ten straight wins and is the fourth ranked team in the nation. The Night Hawks rank first in the Sun Conference and 18
th in the NAIA in goals per game, averaging 3.18. The Thomas defense has been stifling, shutting out opponents seven times this season which ranks them fifth in the NAIA in total shutouts. The centerpiece to the team's offense is junior forward Jarrod Ingram. The Tallahassee native has notched a conference leading 11 goals this season and has recorded four multi-goal games. The Night Hawks are coached by Ricky Zambrano, who is in his eleventh season as head coach of the program and has guided his teams to seven postseason appearances.
