Men's Soccer 10/20/2017 9:00:00 AM Mike Miranto, Associate A.D. For Communications

Wildcats Celebrate Senior Day By Hosting UDC

GAME INFORMATION
Daemen Wildcats (6-9, 2-5 ECC) vs. District of Columbia Firebirds (11-4, 5-2 ECC)
Saturday, Oct. 21 | 1:00 p.m.
Amherst, N.Y. | Karrer Field

GAME LINKS
Live Stats
Live Video on the ECC Network
Game Day

BACK IN THE SADDLE
Head coach Bobby McColl returns for his second season on the Daemen sidelines in 2017, and his sixth overall as a collegiate head coach. McColl heads into the 2017 season with a career coaching record of 47-41-8 with previous stops as the head men's coach at Greenville College (2012) and the head women's coach at Roberts Wesleyan College (2013-15). McCoy recently sat down for a video interview to preview his team's 2017 season.

WILDCATS PICKED 10TH IN ECC PRESEASON POLL
Following a vote of the league's head coaches, Daemen has been picked to finish 10th in the East Coast Conference this season. The Wildcats went 2-15 overall and 0-9 in league play last season. LIU Post, which has won four of the last five ECC titles, was voted as the unanimous favorite this season, and the Pioneers open the year ranked No. 7 in the United Soccer Coaches Division II preseason poll.

INTERNATIONAL FLAIR
Daemen's roster features 11 international players - the most in team history.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
Daemen boasts one of the youngest rosters in the country in 2017 with 22 freshmen. That hasn't stopped head coach Bobby McColl from leaning on his first-year college players. The Daemen coach has put at least nine freshmen in his starting lineup in every game this season. Freshmen Niklas Ringdahl Bohlin and Brage Wiik have started all 15 contests thus far, and 14 total freshmen have made at least one start. Of the team's 34 goals this season, 31 have been scored by freshmen; that's more goals than six ECC teams have scored overall this season.

FLOURISHING FORWARDS
Freshmen forwards Noah Keem, Kristian Aadnoy and Finn Krueger have made an immediate impact in their initial collegiate season. The trio has combined for 17 goals, 11 assists and 45 points thus far. Keem leads the team and all ECC freshmen in goals (7) and points (18), and every one of his points have come in the last seven games. Aadnoy and Krueger have notched five goals apiece. Krueger netted the game-winning goal in spectacular fashion (a diving header in the 88th minute) to lift Daemen to a 3-2 victory over Stonehill on Sept. 4.

STREAK STOPPERS
Daemen's 3-2 victory over Stonehill on Sept. 4 snapped a seven-game slide dating back to the last season, and a 31-game winless streak (0-30-1) against NCAA Division II opponents which dated back to the 2015 season. Daemen's 2-1 victory over Walsh on Sept. 9 snapped a 13-game slide in the all-time series with the Cavaliers. Daemen had been winless against their former NAIA and American Mideast Conference rivals in a series that dates back to Daemen's inaugural season of competition (2000).

REID RETURNS
The Daemen lineup got a boost at the start of the season with the return of redshirt senior forward Alex Reid who missed all of the 2016 season due to injury. Reid, who appeared in the 50th game of his career on Sept. 4 vs. Stonehill, has come off the bench in each game this season. He recorded a goal in a 3-2 loss at St. Thomas Aquinas on Sept. 16, his first since Oct. 30, 2015, and he scored again in last Tuesday's 3-1 loss at Gannon. It marked the third time in Reid's career that he's scored in back-to-back games, and the first time he's done so since Oct. 26 and Nov. 1 of 2013. For his career, Reid has totaled 15 goals, seven assists and 37 points in 61 games. Three of Reid's tallies have been of the game-winning variety, including two in wins over rival Roberts Wesleyan.

OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION
Daemen put together a string of five consecutive multi-goal games in September, marking the first time in team history that the team has recorded at least five-straight games with two or more goals. The previous long of four-straight multi-goal games had only been accomplished twice since the inception of the program in 2000, and not since 2005. Daemen has recorded nine multi-goal games this season. The Wildcats rank second among all ECC teams in total goals (34) and fourth in goals per game (2.27). It's the first time Daemen has scored more than 20 goals in a season since 2011 when the team put up 43.

THRUWAY RIVALRY WIN
Daemen pulled off a dramatic 2-1 win in overtime against longtime rival Roberts Wesleyan on Oct. 4. Noah Keem knotted the game at 1-1 with his goal in the 80th minute, and fellow freshman Sander Johannessen scored the game-winner in the 100th minute. Johannessen got free inside the box and scored with a low shot inside the right post after taking a feed from classmate Niklas Ringdahl Bohlin. It was the first goal of Johannessen's career as he became the first Daemen freshman to score an overtime game-winner since teammate Alex Reid did so in his collegiate debut which also delivered a win over Roberts Wesleyan (3-2, 2OT on Sept. 5, 2013). Freshman goalkeeper Mike D'Amato went the distance and made six saves to preserve the victory. The win snapped a 27-game winless drought (0-26-1) in East Coast Conference games that dated back to the 2014 season. It was also Daemen's first overtime win since defeating Pitt-Johnstown 3-2 (2OT) on Sept. 7, 2015, and it snapped a four-game winless streak (0-3-1) in games that went to overtime. Daemen is now 3-3 this season in games that are decided by one goal.

HEY ROOKIE
Noah Keem is the latest player to earn ECC Rookie of the Week honors after registering three goals and two assists in two games during the week of Oct. 9-15. It was Keem's second ECC Rookie of the Week selection this season, and team's fourth. Freshman defender/midfielder Sander Johannessen earned ECC Rookie of the Week honors for games played Oct. 2-8 after he scored the first goal of his career in overtime to deliver Daemen's 2-1 win at Roberts Wesleyan on Oct. 4. Kristian Aadnoy has also been an ECC Rookie of the Week selection this season, earning the award for Sept. 4-10 when he scored four goals over a three-game span. The four weekly accolades are the most that Daemen has earned in a season since joining the league in 2013.

DROPPING DIMES
Daemen has totaled 32 assists which leads the ECC this season. It's the team's highest total since registering 28 during the 2011 season. A total of 11 players have had at least one assist for the Wildcats, led by freshman midfielder Anthony Cupello who is tied for second among the ECC leaders with seven. Fellow freshman Niklas Ringdahl Bohlin is tied for seventh with five assists.

BATTLE OF THE CATS
Daemen pulled off a 6-1 victory over Pitt-Johnstown on Oct. 10. The Wildcats were sparked by a three-goal outburst in the span of just six minutes in the first half en route to their third win over their last five contests. The loss kept UPJ winless this season (0-10-1); the Mountain Cats entered the game ranked last in the country in goals-against average. Daemen got goals from Samuel Lockman, Noah Keem (2), Logan Podrebarac, Finn Krueger and Craig Buchanan in the win. The six goals were the most for the Wildcats against an NCAA Division II team since Daemen began playing a full Division II schedule in 2013.

KEEM DELIVERS IN THE CLUTCH
Daemen is coming off a 3-2 (OT) win at Queens on Oct. 18 as freshman Noah Keem scored in the 99th minute to seal the deal. Shaquille Corrica sent a long pass down the field and Keem won a race to the ball and beat Queens GK Robert Retnauer who had come off the goal line. The win came after Daemen had battled back from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits in the game, getting goals from freshmen Craig Buchanan and Brage Wiik. Freshman GK Mike D'Amato made six saves to earn his fourth victory of the season.

PROGRAM MILESTONES
Daemen's 3-2 (OT) win at Queens this past Wednesday has put the Wildcats on the cusp of some team milestones. It was the team's second ECC victory of the season, matching the most that the Wildcats have had in a season since joining the league in 2013; it was last achieved in the 2014 season. The team's six wins overall are the most of Daemen's NCAA Division II era which began in 2013, and it brings them within one win of matching the team record for wins in a season (7) which was accomplished in 2005 and 2006.

SENIOR SALUTE
Saturday's game marks the final home contest in the careers of Alex Reid, Logan Podrebarac, Shaquille Corrica and Ross Stewart. Below are career highlights for the quartet...

Alex Reid (Sr., Forward, Lockport, N.Y.)
Career Stats: 61 games played, 38 games started, 15 goals, 7 assists, 37 points, 108 shots, 50 shots on goal, 3 game-winning goals
Career Highlights: Scored in double overtime of his collegiate debut to deliver a 3-2 victory over Roberts Wesleyan on Sept. 5, 2013...registered career-highs in goals (7), assists (3), points (17), shots (41) and shots on goal (21) in his freshman season...registered the first and only multi-goal game of his career in a 2-0 win over Pitt-Johnstown on Sept. 27, 2013...scored again in double overtime to deliver to a 2-1 win over Roberts Wesleyan on Oct. 11, 2014...after missing all of the 2016 season with an injury, came back to rejoin the team in 2017 and has appeared in all 14 contests.

Logan Podrebarac (R-Sr., Midfield/Defender, Burlington, Ont.)
Career Stats: 46 games played, 33 games started, 2 goals, 3 assists, 7 points, 43 shots, 16 shots on goal
Career Highlights: Totaled a career-high five points during his redshirt sophomore season (2015)...scored his first career goal Sept. 15, 2015 in a 3-2 loss at Gannon...scored his first goal of the 2017 season in Daemen's 6-1 win over Pitt-Johnstown on Oct. 10

Shaquille Corrica (R-Jr., Midfielder, New York City, N.Y.)
Career Stats: 24 games played, 9 games started, 1 assist, 1 point, 4 shots, 1 shot on goal
Career Highlights: Made the team as a walk-on in 2015 and has competed for the last three seasons...registered the first assist of his career on Noah Keem's game-winning goal this past Wednesday in a 3-2 overtime win at Queens

Ross Stewart (Gr., Defender, Bangor, Northern Ireland)
Career Stats (including 2 seasons at Davis & Elkins): 46 games played, 42 games started, 2 goals, 7 assists, 11 points, 31 shots, 10 shots on goal
Career Highlights: After helping Davis & Elkins to back-to-back GMAC Tournament appearances and a GMAC regular season title, has made an immediate impact in his first and only season at Daemen...has started all 14 contests that he's appeared in...registered an assist on Brage Wiik's game-winning goal in a 2-1 win over Walsh on Sept. 9...named team captain

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SCOUTING REPORT
UDC is led by veteran head coach Matthew L. Thompson who has led the Firebirds to a 51-53-12 record since taking the reins of the program in 2011. With previous head coaching stops at Slippery Rock and Lees-McRae, Thompson is closing in on 150 career victories (145-124-24 in 16 seasons). Coming off a 5-11-1 campaign last season and picked sixth in the ECC preseason poll, the Firebirds have been the surprise team in the league this season with 11 wins in 15 contests. They'll enter Saturday's game at Daemen in a tie for second place in the ECC standings with a 5-2 league record, and the Firebirds were ranked seventh in the NCAA Division II East Region rankings which came out earlier this week. Sophomore Gabriel Torres and senior Victor Salinas Furio headline the Firebirds' 14 returning players. Torres, a second-team All-ECC selection, posted team-highs of eight goals and 19 points in his rookie season. Salinas Furio, a defender, was a third-team All-ECC pick after making 15 starts in 2016. After opening the year with an 8-1 record in September, the Firebirds are 3-2 in October. After suffering a gut-wrenching 4-3 (OT) loss to nationally-ranked LIU Post last Saturday, the Firebirds bounced back with a 4-2 win over Roberts Wesleyan on Oct. 18. UDC leads the league in total goals (37) and goals per game (2.47), while also ranking fourth in goals-against average (1.33). Torres, who's been a two-time ECC Offensive Player of the Week, has put up monster numbers this season; he presently leads the league in goals (18), assists (8), points (44) and shot attempts (64). Torres has registered six multi-goal games this season, including the last two in a row, and he'll enter Saturday's game with a five-game point streak. Senior forward Raphael Pacano has also produced offensively (6 gls, 2 asts, 14 pts). In goal, UDC has used three net-minders this season with sophomore Joao Brusamolin and freshman Luis Aguirre seeing the bulk of the action. Brusamolin has started three of the last four games, and he holds a 1.33 goals-against average and a .676 save percentage in 12 total appearances this season.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Daemen vs. District of Columbia: 0-3-1
Streak: Lost 3
Last Meeting: District of Columbia 4, Daemen 0 | Oct. 8, 2016 | Washington, D.C.

UP NEXT
Daemen plays its final non-league game of the season Tuesday, Oct. 24 at Lake Erie.

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Players Mentioned

#14 Shaquille Corrica: M; 6' 0"; Redshirt Junior

#12 Logan Podrebarac: M/D; 6' 1"; Redshirt Senior

#22 Alex Reid: M/F; 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior

#9 Kristian Aadnoy: F; 5' 11"; Freshman

#16 Anthony Cupello: M; 5' 8"; Freshman

#7 Noah Keem: F/D; 6' 0"; Freshman

#11 Finn Krueger: M; 6' 1"; Freshman

#15 Samuel Lockman: F; 5' 11"; Freshman

#23 Niklas Ringdahl Bohlin: M; 6' 0"; Freshman

#4 Brage Wiik: D; 5' 9"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#14 Shaquille Corrica
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Junior
: M

#12 Logan Podrebarac
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Senior
: M/D

#22 Alex Reid
: 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior
: M/F

#9 Kristian Aadnoy
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: F

#16 Anthony Cupello
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: M

#7 Noah Keem
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: F/D

#11 Finn Krueger
: 6' 1"; Freshman
: M

#15 Samuel Lockman
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: F

#23 Niklas Ringdahl Bohlin
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: M

#4 Brage Wiik
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: D