HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University men's soccer team (1-4-1, 0-2 HL) squares off with Dayton in a nonconference matchup on Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio.
NORTHERN KENTUCKY at DAYTON
Tuesday, Sept. 23 – 7:00 p.m. – Baujan Sports Field – ESPN+
SERIES HISTORY
Dayton leads the series 3-1. The Norse defeated the Flyers, 1-0, in their last matchup on September 13, 2017.
LAST TIME OUT
NKU went on the road and fell to Cleveland State, 2-1, in overtime on Saturday night. Gianni Bouzoukis scored his first goal of the season in the 60th minute when he gained possession after a blocked Sam Nwosu shot. Baj Maan faced 19 shots, made five saves and allowed both Vikings goals as starting goalkeeper. The Norse fell to 1-4-1 overall and 0-2 in Horizon League play with the loss.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
Dayton comes into the matchup with a 3-4 record on the season, winning three of its last four games. The Flyers' only common opponent with the Norse is IUPUI, who they defeated, 2-0, in a preseason exhibition. Dayton has a one-two scoring punch of Jonas Fjeldberg and Toluwalase Oladeinbo, who each have four goals to their names this season. Federico Barrios has spent every minute at keeper this year, logging 24 saves and a 1.38 goals against average.
PROBERT'S INCREASING ROLE
In his last year as a Norse, senior Connor Probert is making a significant contribution to the season box score. The New Zealand native owns a goal and three assists to his name, with the latter being half of what he recorded a year ago. After placing 13 shots on goal last season, he's already at 10.
THE FRESHMAN KEEPER
Maan has had a great start in filling the graduated Jim Barkei's shoes at goalkeeper. Through six games, the Brampton, Ontario, Canada native has faced 82 shots, made 29 saves and played every minute this year for the Norse. Thanks to his solid play, he is 28th in the nation in total saves.
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 Alex Willis, who finished the year with 16 goals. Alex Greive and Probert, who also return, put up five goals apiece. 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 79-85-26. 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.
