Elon Men’s Soccer Heads to Rutgers for Sunday Night Tilt

ELON, N.C. – After being idle for a week, the Elon University men’s soccer team heads to Piscataway, N.J., for a match versus Big Ten opponent Rutgers on Sunday, Sept. 2. That contest is scheduled to kickoff at 7 p.m. at Yurcak Field.

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Follow @ElonMensSoccer
Updates of the match this Sunday will be provided on Twitter at the program’s handle @ElonMSoccer. The game will also be streamed on the Big Ten Plus, which is available via a paid subscription.

Series History
The Phoenix and the Scarlet Knights have met just once in their histories on the soccer pitch during the regular season, a 2-1 victory by Elon in 2013, when Rutgers was still a member of the Big East. Since joining the Division I level in 1999, Elon has only played versus one team all-time from the Big Ten: Ohio State in 2014, in which the Phoenix fell to the Buckeyes 1-0 in overtime.

Opening Stanza
• Elon had its last match at No. 7 Virginia postponed due to weather on Thursday, Aug. 30. No rescheduled date has been set for that match.
• Elon is in the middle of a originally scheduled three-match road swing with its travel to Rutgers on Sunday. The Phoenix closes against Triad rival High Point on Sept. 8.
• Elon split its games last weekend, Aug. 24-26 at the John Rennie/Nike Invitational at Duke University. After a 1-0 setback versus Vermont to open the season on Friday, Elon bounced back with a 3-0 defeat against No. 20 FIU on Sunday.
• Senior midfielder Jack Willbye and redshirt junior defender Hassan Pinto earned a spot on the All-Tournament team for their play at the John Rennie/Nike Invitational.
• The Phoenix’s win over No. 20 FIU marked Elon’s first win over a top-20 ranked opponent since 2015. Since 2012, Elon has posted an 8-7-1 ledger versus ranked opponents.
• Redshirt senior keeper Matthew Jegier earned the 27th clean sheet of his career against FIU. The Charlotte, N.C., native extended his career program record in that category.
• The Phoenix returns 19 letterwinners and eight starters from last year’s squad and second-year head coach Marc Reeves. Reeves helped lead the Phoenix to a 7-5-6 ledger in 2017 and its fourth straight trip to the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament.
• Elon welcomes 14 newcomers to its roster this season including a pair of spring sophomore transfers in JP Meibohm and SahrFelix Sandy. Meibohm came to the Phoenix from Fort Lewis University while Sandy arrives from Marshall.

Last Time Out
The Phoenix earned a 3-0 victory over No. 20 FIU in its finale at the John Rennie/Nike Invitational on Sunday, Aug. 20, at Duke University. Elon’s win over the Panthers was its first in the all-time series and also its first against a ranked opponent since 2015.

The Phoenix offense was paced by first-time goal scorers in freshman Valdi Jonsson and junior Jimmy Contino. Jonsson put Elon on the board first inside the 36th minute after following up on a failed clearance by the Panthers. After halftime, an own goal from the Panthers near the 60th minute aided the Phoenix with a 2-0 advantage before Contino concluded the scoring for the maroon and gold at the 71st minute mark with his first career goal. The Phoenix would end the match with a 14-11 shot advantage with seven coming on goal compared to three for the Panthers.

Scouting Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights are 1-2 on the season after earning its first victory of the season, 2-0 versus Mount St. Mary’s on Friday, Aug. 31, in Emmitsburg, Md. Rutgers was tabbed to finish ninth in the 2018 Big Ten Preseason poll after going 4-13-1 a season ago and a 0-8-0 ledger during league play.

Rutgers has scored four total goals this season from four this different players. Junior strikers Jordan Hall and Brian Hawkins lead the Scarlet Knights in total points with three on a goal and a assist while Vincenzo Pugliese has a team-best two assists. Senior Rafael Pereira has played every minute in goal for Rutgers and has a 2.00 goals-against average with 12 saves and a shutout on his stat line.

Up Next
Elon closes out its road trip with a visit to Triad rival High Point on Saturday, Sept. 8. That match is scheduled for a 7 p.m. kickoff.