LAKELAND, Fla.—After splitting their road trip this past week, the no. 21 Fire men's soccer team will return home to host Florida Memorial on Saturday searching for momentum as they head into the final stretch of the regular season.
GAME INFO:
#24 Southeastern University (9-2-1, 5-1 TSC) vs Florida Memorial University (1-8, 1-5 TSC)
Date: Saturday, October 20
th, 2018
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Lakeland, Fla.
Game Coverage: Live Updates- @SEUFireMSoccer on Twitter, Live Stats/Video- https://portal.stretchinternet.com/southeastern/
The Fire:
No. 24 Southeastern was upset by the reigning conference champions St. Thomas on Saturday by a score of 3-1, marking the first TSC defeat of the season for SEU (5-1 TSC). The Fire, who were unbeaten in their past nine road competitions, also saw that streak come to an end; however, SEU will look to begin a new stretch with a potent offense. Southeastern averages 2.9 goals per game (35
th in the nation), while recording 2.2 assists per contest (33
rd in the NAIA).
Sharing the Wealth:
Southeastern has spread the ball around quite a bit this season, despite
Jake Van Der Luit ranking 14
th in the nation in goals per game (1.0). The Fire have had 11 different goal scorers produce their 32 tallies this year, along with ten unique players with assists. Thirteen different athletes on the team have points in 2018, while each of the last four Fire goals have been scored by four different players.
The Lions:
Florida Memorial comes into the matchup with Southeastern looking to snap a three-match losing skid. During the recent stretch, despite an 0-3 record, the Lions recorded five of the seven goals they have scored this season. FMU notched four in an overtime defeat against Johnson & Wales before slipping a ball past the Ave Maria keeper on Saturday.
The Lions have tried four different keepers this year, with Andres Espinosa being the most productive. Espinosa got the start against St. Thomas last week and only allowed one goal on five shots. His .800 save percentage is the highest on the team, while he leads FMU in goals against per game, as well (1.0).
Previous Meetings:
The series between the Fire and the Lions has been a tight one to say the least. There have been nine matches played, with FMU coming out on top in five, but Southeastern has captured the last three. Each of the first eight contests were determined by one goal and the only competition not within a score was last year's 5-3 victory by Southeastern. When the match is played at SEU, the Fire are 2-3 against the Lions.
