HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky men's soccer (5-1) takes on Robert Morris (1-3-1) on Thursday. The Norse are aiming for their sixth win in a row and to stay ahead in a tightly-contested battle for first place in the Horizon League.  
      
NORTHERN KENTUCKY vs. ROBERT MORRIS
Thursday, March 18 – 1:00 p.m. ET – Canonsburg, Pa.   
           
SERIES HISTORY      
This is will be the second meeting all-time between the Norse and the Colonials. NKU won the first matchup, 3-2, on Sept. 2, 2018.  
      
LAST TIME OUT      
NKU dueled with Green Bay last week into the second overtime, coming out on top, 3-2. The Phoenix began the game with a quick goal in the seventh minute to set the tone, but NKU later responded with a pair a goals at the end of the first half. Ben Hegge played over to Dylan Bufton for the first goal of the afternoon in the 37th minute, while Sam Robinson and Bufton passed to Deryn Armstrong for a header that gave the Norse the lead. Green Bay equalized the game in the 64th minute and neither side found enough space to get the game-winner in regulation. Finally, in the second overtime, Ryan Godding drilled the perfect corner kick for an untouched golden-goal in the 106th minute.  
   
SCOUTING ROBERT MORRIS     
Robert Morris is 1-3-1 coming into the match, picking up its only win on the 2020-21 season thus far versus Purdue Fort Wayne, 1-0. Miller Masson has the lone goal for the Colonials thus far, while Lorenzo Guagneli assisted on that play. Mike Zolnieczyk has been the top keeper for Robert Morris, owning a 1.24 GAA and a .789 save percentage.  
  
ATOP THE STANDINGS  
NKU remains in first place in the Horizon League standings with 2.50 points per game. UIC is still within a game's reach of the Norse with 2.17 points per game, while Oakland and Cleveland State round out the current Horizon League Tournament field with 2.00 and 1.71 points per game, respectively. Wright State (1.40), Green Bay (1.40) and Milwaukee (1.29) are on the outside looking in.  
   
YOU'RE NEW HERE? ME TOO! LET'S BE FRIENDS.     
It's a pair of newcomers that have led the Norse offense thus far. Dylan Bufton, a transfer from Tyler Junior College that had 14 goals in two years of action, had the lone goal in NKU's 1-0 win over Milwaukee on Feb. 10. He followed the performance with a goal and an assist in NKU's 2-1 win over Oakland on Feb. 22, as well as another goal against IUPUI on March 6. He currently leads the Norse in all three scoring categories. Robinson, who joins NKU this season after a freshman campaign at Cincinnati, gave NKU a 1-0 lead against Detroit Mercy before the Norse ultimately fell, 2-1 on Feb. 4, and netted the game-winner in the IUPUI matchup. Robinson also has a trio of assists on the season.  
 
GODDING'S RISE 
After a great freshman season with two goals and three assists, Godding is playing at an even higher level in the 2020-21 campaign. He's already up to a goal and a trio of assists, two coming in NKU's win over Oakland on Feb. 22. He's proven to be incredibly dangerous servicing NKU's corner kicks on the far side, assisting a Bufton-header for the win versus Oakland and netting the unassisted game-winner in a double-overtime win against Green Bay on March 12.  
 
REVENGE TOUR  
Four Horizon League opponents the Norse lost to a year ago have suffered losses to NKU this season, which will prove crucial in earning a spot in this season's Horizon League Tournament. NKU defeated Milwaukee, 1-0, on Feb. 10 (lost, 2-1, in 2019), Cleveland State, 2-1, on Feb. 28 (lost, 2-1, in 2019), IUPUI, 2-0, on March 6 (lost, 2-1, in 2019) and Green Bay, 3-2, on March 12 (lost, 3-2, in 2019).  
  
EVERY DAY IT GETS A LITTLE EASIER     
NKU has showed its improvements defensively this season. In the first six games of the 2019 season, the Norse gave up 81 shots, 39 shots on goal and 10 goals. NKU has improved in all of those metrics in the first six games this season, allowing 66 shots, 22 shots on goal and six goals.   
 
UNFINISHED BUSINESS       
Three former Bearcats, all entering their sophomore campaigns after transferring in the offseason due to Cincinnati discontinuing its program, join the Norse with three years remaining in their respective soccer careers. Robinson, a forward, played in 16 games a year ago, logging 699 minutes and scoring his first-career goal versus Cleveland State on Oct. 9. Kyle Healy, a midfielder, also struck in a goal against Xavier on Sept. 6 to go along with an assist against Purdue Fort Wayne on Oct. 1. Finally, Hegge, another midfielder, appeared in 11 games for the Bearcats, seeing the pitch for 294 minutes.       
  
HORIZON LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL        
Northern Kentucky was selected to finish eighth in the 2020-21 edition of the Horizon League preseason poll with 48 points. UIC and Oakland both claimed the top-spot with 109 points, but the Flames garnered eight first-place votes compared to Oakland's three. Wright State rounded out the top three in the poll with 88 points.         
    
A YEAR AGO        
The Norse finished 7-10-1 and 3-5 in the conference play in 2019. NKU began the season with a strong exhibition showing against No. 8 Kentucky, tying the Wildcats, 0-0. The Norse also took down both Wright State, the eventual Horizon League Tournament Champions, and UIC, the holder of the regular-season crown. On Oct. 9, the Norse reached the back of the net an impressive 11 times en route to shutting out Berea, tying Syracuse for the most goals in a single game in Division I on the season.         
             
NEW YEAR, NEW NORSE        
Along with Armstrong, Bufton, Healy, Hegge and Robinson, six other Norse are new additions this season: Roberto Burlew, Trey Denigan, Tobias Karlsen, Daniel Kaufman, Cam Newton, Jesse Randall and Andrés Zaffino.      
        
RIDDLE ME THIS       
Following a 1-13-4 season in 2016, Stu Riddle was hired to lead NKU's men's soccer program and the Norse have been 29-24-5 in the last four years. Riddle led NKU to a 10-7 showing in 2018, which is the highest win-mark in NKU's Division I era. Riddle is an 11-year head-coaching veteran, owning an 90-92-26 record. He is joined by assistants Blair Stevenson (fourth season) and Sam Brooks (third season).