LAKELAND, Fla. – The second-seeded Southeastern University men's soccer team is riding an emotional wave of momentum into The Sun Conference Tournament Final. The Fire advanced past sixth-seeded Johnson & Wales in penalties 4-3 on Tuesday night in one of the most intense matches ever played at the SEU Soccer Complex. SEU now competes in the conference tournament final for the first time since 2015. The Fire travel to Thomasville, Ga. to face top-seeded Thomas University.
The Sun Conference Tournament Final:
No. 2 Seed Southeastern (11-3-2, 7-2 TSC) at No. 1 Seed Thomas (9-4-2, 7-1-1 TSC) Friday 12:00 p.m.
COVERAGE:
WATCH/LIVE STATS
FIRE FOCUS:
- The Fire look to capture their first Sun Conference Tournament Championship since 2015.
- Senior forward Jake Van Der Luit scored both SEU goals versus JWU and converted a penalty kick. The Chicago native averages just north of a goal per game (1.07) which ranks 12th in the NAIA.
- After not having competed in the entire 110 minutes prior, senior goalkeeper Jorge Navarrete made a crucial penalty kick save in the shootout versus JWU. He has 43 saves on the season.
- An upperclassmen has scored the last 12 goals netted by Southeastern.
TU ALL-TIME:
- Southeastern fell to Thomas 5-2 on the road earlier this season on 10/24. This allowed Thomas to clinch The Sun Conference Regular Season Championship.
- Van Der Luit and Craig Barker were the SEU goal scorers in the loss.
- The Night Hawks lead the all-time series 9-2, with the last Fire win coming in 2016.
THE NIGHT HAWKS:
- Thomas appears in the conference tournament final for the first time since 2014, the year in which TU won the tournament title.
- The Night Hawks currently own a four-match win streak.
- After restarting the game Wednesday morning after having played 63 minutes the day prior, the Night Hawks edged Keiser 1-0 in the second overtime period.
- Freshman forward Y'sef Glass is tied for the team lead in goals with six. Glass has found the back of the net in two of his last three outings.
- Redshirt-junior goalkeeper Ben Barnes has registered back-to-back full 90 shutouts.
TALE OF THE TAPE:
SEU
Goals per Game: 2.87
Shots per Game: 16.93
Shots on Goal per Game: 7.87
Shutouts: 3
Individual Goals Leader:
Jake Van Der Luit (15)
Individual Assists Leader:
Jonathan Jimenez (7)
Individual Saves Leader:
Jorge Navarrete (43)
TU
Goals per Game: 1.87
Shots per Game: 11.8
Shots on Goal per Game: 5.8
Shutouts: 6
Individual Goals Leader: Two Tied (6)
Individual Assists Leader: Gavin Rochford-Smith (6)
Individual Saves Leader: Ben Barnes (40)
COACH CLAY'S CORNER:
"We are excited to play for another Sun Conference Championship. This has been the goal all season and we know we have a very tough task ahead of us. We know that Thomas is a very good team and our defensive organization and attention to detail is a key to the game. Offensively we need to control the tempo of the game and have better possession than we had against Thomas in our regular-season match up. I anticipate a very good game," -
Clay Roberts Southeastern Head Coach.
Be sure to follow @SEUFireMSoccer on Twitter for all of the latest updates on Fire soccer.
