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HOBOKEN, N.J. (November 5, 2013) – Fourth-ranked and top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology will host Nazareth College in a 2013 Empire 8 Men's Soccer Championship semifinal at the De Baun Athletic Complex Wednesday afternoon at 4 p.m.
The Ducks earned the No. 1 seed and rite to host any matches it plays in the conference tournament thanks to a 6-0-0 conference record. Nazareth earned the fourth side via a 3-3 conference mark.
Stevens and Nazareth played in Hoboken back on October 5 with the Ducks rolling to 4-0 victory. It was Stevens' third-straight win in what is now a nine-match winning streak dating back to a September 28. Over that span, the Ducks have allowed four goals against while putting in 23 of their own.
In that October 5 matchup, sophomore forward
Joe Celitti (Mendham, N.J.) put Stevens up for good at 26:43 with a marker from 30-yards out. Sophomore midfielder
Colin Phillips (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) followed with a tally at 31:31, converting a free kick from 19-yards away into a tally, and sophomore forward
Carson Pryor (St. Louis, Mo.) netted a pair of second-half scores for good measure. Senior goalie
Paul Killian (Ellicott City, Md.) made a season-best seven saves in the win as the Ducks recorded one of nine shutouts on the year. Killian has four of his own.
Pryor leads Stevens in goals with 11 and points with 25 as the Duck sophomore is tops in the Empire 8 in points, points per game, goals and goals per game. Thirteen different Stevens players have scored this season with nine netting at least two times.
Defensively, Stevens is tops in the conference and fifth nationally in team goals-against average, allowing just seven tallies against in 16 matches this season. The Ducks' shutout percentage of .56 is 16th country, with Killian checking in at No. 6 individually in goals-against average.
Stevens leads the Empire 8 in assists per game, points per game, save percentage, scoring offense, shutout percentage, team goals-against average, total assists, total goals and won-lost tied percentage.
Stevens (14-1-1), which joined the Empire 8 in 2007, has won Empire 8 titles in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 as the Ducks are looking for their seventh-straight E8 Championship.
Stevens is currently ranked No. 4 by
www.D3Soccer.com, No. 5 by the NSCAA and No. 1 in the East Region.
Nazareth comes in to Wednesday's match at 6-10-0 overall after locking up a berth in the conference tournament with a 5-1 win over Alfred. Ryan Foley and Simon Mounsdon lead Naz with nine points apiece, while Jason Renfro is tops on the team in assists with five.
As a team, the Golden Flyers are ranked 60th in saves per game and goalkeeper Nate Ripic checks in 65th in that statistic. In the Empire 8, Nazareth is third in assists per game and points per game, No. 1 in saves per game, third in scoring offense, third in total assists and third in total points.
Wednesday's match from the De Baun Athletic Complex will start at 4 p.m. Tickets are $5 for general admission, $3 for students and seniors and free for Children under 12 years of age. Anyone with a Stevens ID will receive free admission to the match.
All of Wednesday's action can be seen live at
www.Empire8.TV.
