BALTIMORE, Md. -- UMBC and New Hampshire, which battled to a scoreless tie in the 2011 America East men's soccer championship before the Retrievers won in a shootout, will meet in a rematch of that game Friday at Retriever Soccer Park.
The game, which is part of the network's NSCAA College Game of the Week package will be nationally televised by Fox Soccer Channel and kick off at 7 p.m. Dave Johnson (play-by-play) and Keith Tabatznik (analyst) will have the call.
UMBC (6-3-3 overall, 3-0-0 America East) sits atop the America East standings having gotten off to its best league start since joining the league in 2003. The Retrievers, who are unbeaten in their last four games, have posted back-to-back 1-0 victories, downing Boston University Saturday and Binghamton Sunday.
Senior goalkeeper Dan Louisignau has been led a UMBC defense that ranks second in the league in goals against average (0.89). Louisignau also ranks second individually in GAA and leads the conference in save percentage (.845), saves per game (5.00) and shutouts (6). On the offensive end, sophomore Pete Caringi, a second-team all-league striker as a rookie, leads the Retrievers and is tied for the league lead in assists (4) and is tied for third in points (12) and goals (4).
New Hampshire (5-6-1, 1-1-1) currently sits in fourth place in the conference standings. The Wildcats have a win and a tie in its last two games and is 4-2-1 in its last seven. The Wildcats thrashed Binghamton Saturday 3-0 behind a pair of goals from sophomore Steven Palumbo and tied Hartford, 1-1, on Tuesday.
Senior Brad Hilton, an all-conference selection last year, has a team-high eight points, which is tied for seventh among league leaders. He also is tied for the league lead with four assists. Palumbo and freshman David Schlatter are tied for eighth with three goals apiece.
This is the
fourth straight year an America East contest has been nationally
televised as part of FOX Soccer's package. Last season, Boston U.
upended UMBC, 2-0, while Binghamton downed the Terriers, 2-1, in 2009.
In 2008, Boston U. edged the Bearcats, 4-2, in women's action.
Since 2005, the NSCAA and FOX Soccer have joined forces to offer live
and exclusive NSCAA College Game of the Week telecasts. This season’s
schedule includes eight women’s and 12 men’s matches. Among the teams
showcased during the telecasts will be eight men’s and seven women’s
teams that appeared in the final NSCAA Division I national rankings from
the 2010 season, including both reigning national champions: the
University of Akron on the men’s side and the University of Notre Dame
for the women.
Fans who miss a match will be able to view NSCAA College Game of the Week telecasts on-demand via FOXSoccer.tv, Fox Soccer’s broadband video service.