THE LEAD: The Daemen College men's soccer team will head to the nation's capital this weekend for an East Coast Conference game at the University of the District of Columbia…the game was originally scheduled for a 1 p.m. start, but the start time has been changed to 3:30 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 25
Daemen at District of Columbia - 3:30 p.m.


THE COACHES: Mark Spacone is in his third season as head coach at Daemen...he brings a wealth of knowledge to the position with 16 prior years of experience at nearly every level of the game, including collegiate, high school, club and Olympic Development…Matt Thompson is in his fourth season as head coach at UDC...he previously served as head coach at Lees McRae College (2010) and Slippery Rock University (2002-09)...he led LMC to a NCAA berth in his one season with the Bobcats and posted an 85-68-11 (.552) record in his eight seasons at SRU...a three-time PSAC Coach of the Year selection, he led SRU to three NCAA Tournament appearances.

MOVE TO II: Daemen is in Candidacy Year Three of the NCAA Division II membership process. Daemen has been accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) and began playing full regular-season conference schedules last fall. The College will also maintain its affiliation with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) for postseason opportunities, as it will not be eligible for the ECC or NCAA postseason during Candidacy Year Three.

THE SERIES: Saturday's game will mark just the second meeting between Daemen and UDC…the teams battled to a 2-2 OT tie last year at Dimp Wagner Stadium…Daemen took a 2-0 lead after Alex Reid scored in the 61st minute, but the Firebirds cut the lead in half in the 67th minute and forced OT after Bakery Coulibaly scored for the visitors with 7:17 left in regulation…Daniel Romer stopped nine shots for Daemen, while Louis Connor made six saves for UDC.

THE WILDCATS (5-7-0; 2-5-0 ECC): Daemen returns 11 players and several starters from last year's team that posted a 4-13-1 record (0-9-1 ECC)…the Wildcats were picked 11th in the ECC preseason poll…senior goalkeeper Matt Daddario returns for his fourth year as the team's primary net-minder, while sophomore Alex Reid returns up front after ranking second on the team in goals (7) and points (17) as a rookie…Daemen rallied for a 2-1 victory at Saint Rose in its 2014 season opener, but went 1-4 over its next five games…the Wildcats then won three of their next four games and recorded their first-ever ECC win following a 2-1 (2 OT) victory over St. Thomas Aquinas on Oct. 5…Cole Beale scored 2:56 into the second overtime to seal the historic win…the Wildcats made it two-straight ECC wins following a 2-1 (2 OT) victory over rival Roberts Wesleyan on Oct. 11…Reid scored the game winner with 4:26 left in the second OT…Daemen is coming off losses at Queens (2-0) and Molloy (1-0) last weekend…the Wildcats have recorded the most wins in a season since 2010…Beale scored twice in a 3-1 win over Gannon and has netted five of Daemen's 12 goals…additional offense has come from Caleb Holmes (2 gls, 2 asts) and Reid (2 gls, 2 asts)…Daddario has played every minute in net and owns a 1.69 GAA…he made a season-high 10 saves in the win over Gannon and made six saves in the win over RWC.

GETTING DEFENSIVE: The Wildcats have showed marked improvement in the defensive end this season after ranking last among ECC teams in goals allowed (56) and goals against average (3.00) last year…Daemen currently ranks sixth in fewest goals allowed (21) and seventh in goals against average (1.69)…the Wildcats allowed 10 shots on goal a game last year, but are limiting opponents to an average of 6.9 shots on goal this season…Daemen allowed three or more goals nine times last year, but only three teams have scored three of more goals on the Wildcats this season.

THE FIREBIRDS (7-6-1; 3-4-0 ECC): UDC was picked seventh in the ECC preseason poll...the Firebirds finished 7-6-3 overall and 2-5-3 in the ECC last fall…UDC went 5-2-1 over its first eight games, but has lost four of its last six games…the Firebirds are coming off losses to St. Thomas Aquinas (3-2) and New York Tech (2-1) last week…UDC's balanced attack features eight players with at least one goal…sophomores Felix Angerer (8 gls, 4 asts) and Nenad Smiljanic (5 gls, 4 asts) have led the way, while additional support has come from juniors Elio Hernandez (3 gls, 2 asts) and Moussa Traore (3 gls, 1 asts)…junior Louis Connor (1.66 GAA, 2 SO) has started all 14 games in net...he made a season-high 10 saves in the 2-1 loss to NYIT last week.

WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats are idle until next weekend when they host New York Tech Friday (Oct. 31) at 6 p.m. and LIU Post Sunday (Nov. 2) at 1:30 p.m. It will mark the final two regular-season games for Daemen.

FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College men's soccer on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics or @DaemenSoccer) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.