HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University men's soccer team (4-9-1, 2-4 Horizon League) will take a trip up to Milwaukee (7-6-1, 1-3-1 Horizon League) on Saturday for a conference matchup.
NORTHERN KENTUCKY at MILWAUKEE
Saturday, Oct. 26 – 8:00 p.m. ET – Milwaukee, Wisconsin
SERIES HISTORY
Milwaukee leads the series 4-0. The Norse lost to the Panthers, 2-1, in their last matchup on Sept. 22, 2018.
LAST TIME OUT
NKU fell to Oral Roberts on Tuesday night, 5-2, at NKU Soccer Stadium. The Norse dropped three goals to their opponent in the first 10 minutes of the contest, forcing NKU to play catchup. Alex Greive and Alex Willis each had goals in the 65th minute to bring the game within a score before ORU scored another pair. Greive's goal in the contest was his 10th on the year.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
Milwaukee is on a two-game win streak, taking nonconference wins at Eastern Illinois and Valparaiso. Evan Conway and Vuk Latinovich have five and four goals, respectively, to lead the Panthers' scoring output. Junior goalkeeper Freddy Lorenzen has played all but one game for Milwaukee this season, putting together a 1.28 GAA and a .673 save percentage.
MAKING THE OTHER TEAMS GREIVE
Greive is on a roll as the Norse battle through the second half of the 2019 slate. The junior currently leads the team with 10 goals, eight of which came in a three-match span against arguably the best two teams in the Horizon League and Berea. His hat-trick effort against UIC garnered him Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week honors on October 7. He has scored a goal in five of the last seven matches.
BRINGING DOWN LAST YEAR'S GOLIATHS
A season ago, Wright State won the Horizon League regular-season title and UIC won the Tournament. In back-to-back games, NKU defeated both teams by results of 2-1 and 3-2, respectively.
PRESEASON POLLING
Northern Kentucky was selected to finish sixth in this year's Horizon League preseason poll, receiving 46 points. Wright State, last year's regular season champion, topped the poll with 74 points and four first-place votes. UIC, which won the Horizon League Tournament a year ago, was the clear second choice, garnering 69 points and the remaining five first-place votes.
A YEAR AGO
NKU finished its 2018 campaign with a 10-7 overall and 3-5 record in the Horizon League. The Norse showed off a capable offense, scoring 2.18 goals a game thanks much in part to returning leading scorer Willis, who finished the year with 16 goals. Greive and Conner Probert, who also return, put up five goals apiece. Jim Barkei led NKU between the posts for much of the season, playing in 12 games, accumulating 45 saves and donning an 8-4 record.
TAKING A LOOK AT THE SQUAD
The Norse return 13 players from last year's team and add 11 newcomers to the fold for 2019. Brendan Auguste, Daniel Bermingham, Gianni Bouzoukis, Gino Geiser, Ryan Godding, Maan, Samuel Nwosu, Mahamud Osman, Josiah Pokopac, Sallows and Ali Zohar are all in their first season at NKU.
RIDDLE ME THIS
Head coach Stu Riddle is in his third season leading the program, and it is his 11th season as a head coach. He has an overall record of 82-90-26. Since his hiring, NKU has seen steady improvement, with last year's 10-7 campaign being the most wins in the program's Division I era.
