GAME INFORMATION & LINKS
Game #5
Daemen Wildcats (0-4, 0-0 ECC) vs. New York Tech Bears (1-4, 0-0 ECC)
Saturday, Sept. 21 | 2:30 p.m.
Old Westbury, N.Y. | President's Stadium
Live Streaming Video (via ECC Network)
Live Stats

FREE KICK
Daemen opens East Coast Conference play at New York Tech Saturday. It also marks the league opener for the host Bears. The Wildcats opened the year with non-league setbacks to Malone (2-1), Walsh (2-1), Findlay (5-0) and regionally-ranked Le Moyne (7-1). NYIT opened the year with four-straight losses to St. Rose (1-0), American International (4-3), Southern Connecticut (3-1) and Wilmington (4-0), before posting its first win of the season following a 6-0 victory over Caldwell this past Wednesday. Three of NYIT's first five opponents (St. Rose, AIC, Wilmington) are ranked in the latest United Soccer Coaches East Region poll.

BELIEVE IN BEDI
The 2019 season marks a new era for the Wildcats as head coach Bediako Swan takes the reins. Swan was introduced last February as the sixth head coach in the modern era of the Daemen men's soccer program, coming over after assistant coaching gigs at Division I St. Francis (Pa.) and Division II Davis & Elkins. Last fall in his only season with the Red Flash, Swan contributed to St. Francis' 9-5-3 campaign. In four seasons at D&E, he helped the Senators average 10 wins per season. A native of Grenada, Swan is a 2012 graduate of D&E where he enjoyed a successful playing career that included two all-conference and one all-region selection.

HOME COOKING
Daemen has played three of its first four games at home. The Wildcats posted a 4-3-0 record at home last season, their first season with better than a .500 winning percentage at home since going 3-0-0 in 2000.

BUILDING BLOCKS
The Wildcats return 11 players from last year's team that finished 5-12-0 overall and 3-6-0 in the ECC. Five of the returning 11 hold two years of collegiate playing experience. Those five players - goalkeeper Jarrett Lecceadone, midfielder Anthony Cupello, forwards Derek Mancuso, Craig Buchanan and Nate Sorgi - have each played a role in helping Daemen to 12 wins over the last two seasons, marking the program's most successful two-year span since winning 14 games from 2005-06. Lecceadone saw action in nine games and made five starts as a freshman, but was limited by injuries to just two appearances in 2018. He and sophomore Eithan Hahn are likely to each see time between the pipes early this season. Cupello was named the team's MVP despite missing the final five games of the 2018 season with an injury. In 30 career games, Cupello has posted 17 points (3 gls, 11 asts). Buchanan has appeared in 34 games over the last three seasons, totaling three goals and two assists.

LUNDIN BRIDGE
Sophomore defender Pontus Lundin has netted two of Daemen's three goals so far this season, with both coming by way of penalty kick. His goal in the 64th minute vs. Malone on Sept. 5 evened the score at 1-1, and marked the first tally of his collegiate career. Two days later against Walsh, his goal at the 51:00 mark broke a scoreless tie, and held up as the game's only scoring until Walsh netted the equalizer with less than four minutes remaining in regulation.

RIDERS ON THE STORM
Daemen's game at Gannon on Sept. 11 was suspended and later fully postponed due to a thunderstorm moving through the Erie, Pa. area. Because the game had not yet reached the 70 minute mark, it was essentially declared a no contest. The teams have re-scheduled the game for Monday, Oct. 7 at McConnell Family Stadium. The game will re-start from the beginning with a 0-0 score.

NEW YORK TECH SCOUTING REPORT
New York Tech is led by veteran head coach Carlos Delcid who is in his 19th season in that role. Over his nearly two-decade tenure, Delcid has led the Bears to a 197-105–30 record, six NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and a run to the Division II national quarterfinals in 2005. NYIT posted an 8-7-1 overall record and a 3-5-1 mark in the ECC last year. The Bears were picked third in the ECC preseason poll. Graduate student forward Bernd Schlüter led the Bears with 14 goals during his inaugural collegiate season in 2018 en route to being named first-team All-ECC and the ECC Rookie of the Year. Simon-Peter Omooba, a third-team All-ECC pick in 2017, returns up front after missing most of last year due to injury. He scored four goals in the win over Caldwell and has totaled a team-high 12 points (six goals) this season. Senior Andrew Pereira (2.11 GAA) and sophomore Pol Zapata (3.23 GAA) have shared the goaltending duties thus far. Pereira started 15 of 16 games last year. He played all 90 minutes and made four saves in the win over Caldwell.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. NEW YORK TECH
Series Record: 0-7
Streak: L-7
Last Meeting: NYIT 3, Daemen 1 | Sept. 29, 2018 | at Amherst, N.Y.

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen returns to non-conference play Wednesday (Sept. 25) when it travels to California (Pa.) University. It will mark just the second all-time meeting between the two schools. Cal. Pa. prevailed in the first-ever meeting (3-0) on Sept.10, 2016 in Amherst, N.Y.