HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University men's soccer team travels to Marshall on Tuesday for a nonconference match. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m., and the match will be broadcast live on conferenceusa.com. Fans wanting to watch the broadcast will have to pay a subscription fee. In addition to the broadcast, there will be live audio and stats for the match.     
 
 
NORTHERN KENTUCKY vs. MARSHALL
Tuesday, Oct. 16 – 7 p.m. – Huntington, West Virginia – Watch ($) – Listen – Live Stats  
 
SERIES HISTORY
Marshall leads the series 6-3-2. The teams last met on Sept. 20, 2017, and the match ended in a 2-2 tie.
 
LAST TIME OUT
NKU defeated Detroit Mercy in Horizon League action on Saturday by a final score of 6-2. Alex Greive scored in the second minute to give the Norse a 1-0 lead. Rikard Lindqvist doubled the lead in the 23^rd minute with a shot from outside the box. Alex Willis put NKU ahead 3-0 after he converted a penalty kick in the 32^nd minute. Greive scored his second goal of the match in the 66^th minute. Detroit Mercy scored a goal in the 67^th minute to make the score 4-1. Willis responded with his second goal of the match to put NKU ahead 5-1 in the 71^st minute. Moments later, the Titans scored a goal in the 73^rd minute. However, Felix Komolong scored in the 76^th minute to give NKU the 6-2 lead.
 
TAKING A LOOK AT THE STATS
The Norse are 9-4 on the season and 2-3 in the Horizon League. The nine wins are tied for a program record for most victories in a season in the Division I era.  NKU is averaging 2.54 goals per match and allowing an average of 1.54 goals per contest. The Norse are 7-0 when scoring at least three goals in a match. The team is fifth in the NCAA in scoring offense. Alex Willis ranks second in the nation in total points and goals with 35 and 14, respectively. Alex Greive still leads the NCAA in total assists with 11. Senior goalkeeper Jim Barkei has started nine contests and has a 7-2 record this season. He has made 31 saves for a 0.689 save percentage and a 1.63 goals against average.
 
ALEX WILLIS AND ALEX GREIVE EARN NATIONAL RECOGNITION
Sophomore midfielder Alex Greive was named to the Top Drawer Soccer and College Soccer News National Team of the Week for his play from Sept. 10-16. He also earned Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week honors. Greive recorded an assist on all five goals that NKU scored. The Norse went 2-0 with wins over Evansville and previously unbeaten Green Bay. Greive had three assists in the 3-0 win over Evansville on Tuesday, Sept. 11. He followed that up with two assists in the 2-1 win over Green Bay on Saturday, Sept. 15. Green Bay had a 4-0-1 record entering the match. Greive's second assist against Green Bay occurred with 1:17 left in the match to help the Norse get the victory.
 
Freshman forward Alex Willis earned national recognition for his play from Aug. 27-Sept. 2. Willis was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week, and he also earned United Soccer Coaches Player of the Week honors for NCAA Division I. In addition to his national awards, Willis was named the Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week.
 
Willis helped the Norse to a 3-2 victory over preseason Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) favorite Canisius on Monday, Aug. 27. He scored two goals and recorded an assist in the match against the Golden Griffins. Willis followed that up with two goals against Duquesne on Friday, Aug. 31 in NKU's 2-1 win. Despite the Norse playing with nine men starting late in the second half, Willis scored the game-winner in the 96^th minute to lift NKU to victory. Willis followed that performance with a goal and two assists on Sunday, Sept. 2 to help the Norse defeat Robert Morris 3-2.
 
SECOND SEASON
Head coach Stu Riddle is in his second season leading the program, and it is his 10^th season as a head coach. He has an overall record of 77-78-25. Assistant coach Blair Stevenson and volunteer assistant coach Roger Lane are also in their second years at NKU, while assistant coach Sam Brooks is in his first season on the Norse coaching staff.
 
TAKING A LOOK AT THE SQUAD
The Norse return 14 players from last year's team and add nine newcomers to the fold for 2018. Wes Collins, Justin Earle, Ed Harvey, Will Hunt, Stian Jørgensen, Sam Mason, Connor Probert, Sam Slocum, and Alex Willis are in their first seasons at NKU.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
Marshall is 4-6-2 on the year and 1-2-1 in Conference USA play. The Thundering Herd are averaging 1.42 goals per match and allow an average of 1.33 goals per contest. The team most recently fell to No. 5 Kentucky on Saturday by a final score of 1-0 in double overtime. Prior to that match, the Thundering Herd defeated Purdue Fort Wayne 3-0 on Oct. 9. JP Rylah leads the team with three goals and seven points. Jonas Westmeyer also has seven points, with two goals and three assists on the season. Paulo Pita has started 12 matches for Marshall at goalkeeper. He has made 49 saves for a 0.754 save percentage and a 1.28 goals against average.