America East's men's soccer teams begin their quest for the conference's regular-season title as they kick off their seven-game regular-season schedules on Saturday.
Upcoming Games
Saturday, September 29
Stony Brook (6-2-1) at Albany (2-7-0), 5 p.m. -- Live Stats
Albany, N.Y.
• These two teams come in heading in different directions as the Seawolves are riding a five-game unbeaten streak (4-0-1) while the Great Danes have dropped six in a row.
• The Seawolves, who are ranked ninth in the latest NSCAA/Continental Tire Northeast Region Poll, are 15-7-5 against America East foes over the last three seasons.
• SBU's Leonardo Fernandes ranks second in the conference and among the top 25 nationally with 16 points on six goals and four assists. Anthony Rozzano leads Albany with five points on a pair of goals and an assist.
• The Seawolves and Great Danes met twice last year, playing to a scoreless tie in the regular season before Stony Brook defeated Albany, 3-1, in the semifinals of the America East Championship en route to its second conference title in three years.
Hartford (6-4-0) at Boston University (2-5-2), 7 p.m. -- Live Stats | Live Video
Boston, Mass.
• The Hawks and Terriers have split the last six matches in the series and traded a pair of 1-0 decisions in 2011.
• Hartford, which has won four its last five, advanced to the America East Championship for the first time since 1999 last year by virtue of beating the Terriers in the semifinals.
• Boston U., which has won three of the last four America East regular-season crowns, has already faced six ranked opponents this season and gone 1-4-1 against them, including a 1-0 win over then-#11 Boston College on Aug. 27.
• Two of the conference's top rookies with square off in this game. Hartford's Javoni Simms ranks second among America East leaders with seven goals while Boston U.'s Mac McGuire is third on his team with five points.
New Hampshire (3-3-2) at Binghamton (4-5-0), 7 p.m. -- Live Stats | Live Video
Vestal, N.Y.
• Contrasting styles will be on display when UNH and Binghamton square off. The Wildcats have surrendered only 11 goals this season while scoring just eight, while the Bearcats have scored 14 while allowed 16.
• Both teams are coming off wins over Alelphi with the Bearcats beating the Panthers, 3-0, on Sept. 22 and the Wildcats winning a 2-1 overtime decision on Wednesday.
• Binghamton leads the all-time series 6-5-2 but UNH has won three of the last four get togethers, including a 3-0 victory in 2011.
• The Bearcats' Jake Keegan ranks among the top scorers in the country and leads America East with 19 points and eight goals.
Vermont (3-3-3) at UMBC (4-2-2), 7 p.m. -- Live Stats | Live Video
Baltimore, Md.
•
Both teams enter conference play riding unbeaten streaks with the
Catamounts 2-0-3 over their last five games and the Retrievers 2-0-1 in
their last three matches.
• UMBC and Vermont are the top two
defensive teams in the conference. The Retrievers lead the way allowing
just 0.89 goals per contest, while the Catamounts are second
surrendering 1.00 goals per game.
• The Retrievers, who are
ranked 10th in the NSCAA/Continental Tire Northeast Region Poll, are
unbeaten at home this season (2-0-3) while the Cats are just 1-3-2 on
the road.
• Vermont's Conor Leland (0.75 GAA) and UMBC's Phil
Saunders (0.83 GAA), the two starting goalkeepers, rank second and third
in America East, respectively, in goals-against average.