No. 19 Xavier Opens BIG EAST Play at No. 9 St. John's

CINCINNATI - No. 19 Xavier men's soccer travels to No. 9 St. John's on Friday, Sept. 20. First touch is set for 7 p.m. from Belson Stadium.

THE MATCHUP AT ST. JOHN'S

No. 19 XAVIER MUSKETEERS (3-1-1, 0-0-0) at No. 9 ST. JOHN'S RED STORM (6-0-0. 0-0-0)
Game Info - Friday, Sept. 20 - 7 p.m. ET - Belson Stadium (2,168)
Live Video (BEDN) - bit.ly/2kERkDP
Live Stats - bit.ly/2krpryU

ABOUT ST. JOHN'S

2019 Record: 6-0-0 (0-0-0 BIG EAST)
2018 Record: 7-8-3 (3-3-3 BIG EAST)
Series History: Xavier leads, 3-2-2
Last Meeting: Xavier 1, St. John's 1 - OT2 (Sept. 21, 2018 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• The Red Storm are off to their best start in school history with a 6-0-0 record. St. John's is one of 12 teams in the NCAA without a loss or tie this season.
• St. John's is ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Poll Top-10 for the first time since 2013. The Red Storm are ranked ninth in the nation.
• The Red Storm are coming off a 5-1 win at Columbia on Monday night. St. John's ranks second in the BIG EAST in total goals (15) this season, while ranking second in goals against average (0.49 GAA).

XU-SJU SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier leads the all-time series with St. John's, 3-2-2. The Musketeers and Red Storm played to a 1-1 tie on Sept. 21, 2018 in the last meeting between the two schools.

• The Musketeers are 1-2-1 when playing at St. John's. The Musketeers dropped a 3-0 match in Queens on Sept. 23, 2017 in the last meeting at St. John's.

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off a 3-2 double overtime loss to Memphis on Sept. 14.

• Seniors Derrick Otim and Samson Sergi both scored a goal in the loss for the Musketeers.

XU IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS

• Xavier is ranked 19th in the United Soccer Coaches Poll this week, down from 11th last week. The Musketeers were also ranked 11th in the TopDrawerSoccer.com Top-25 Poll.

• The Musketeers have been nationally-ranked in at least one major college soccer poll (United Soccer Coaches, Top Drawer Soccer, College Soccer News, Soccer America) in every season since 2011.

• Xavier has been ranked in the nation's top-10 three times in the last seven years by the United Soccer Coaches. The Musketeers highest ranking was ninth in the USC Poll on Oct. 28, 2014.

• Xavier was ranked in all three national polls last season on Sept. 25, checking in at No. 20 in the College Soccer News Top 30 and No. 22 in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25. Xavier was rated the highest in TopDrawerSoccer's Top 25, ranking 18th overall.

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

• Senior Derrick Otim was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Monday. The midfielder scored two goals and posted one assist last week for the Musketeers.

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOREES
Sept. 16 - Derrick Otim - Weekly Honor Roll
Sept. 9 - Samson Sergi - Offensive Player of the Week
Sept. 9 - Matthew Rosenberg - Weekly Honor Roll
Sept. 2 - Matthew Rosenberg - Goalkeeper of the Week

COLLEGE SOCCER NEWS HONORS

• Two Xavier players have earned College Soccer News National Team of the Week honors this season. Jacob Goodall earned the honors on Sept. 9 and Matthew Rosenberg picked up the recognition on Sept. 2.

CSN NATIONAL TEAM OF THE WEEK HONOREES
Sept. 9 - Jacob Goodall
Sept. 2 - Matthew Rosenberg

NOTABLES

• Senior Samson Sergi has a team-leading five goals this season. He now has 24 career goals, ranking tied for 10th all-time in program history.

• Samson Sergi's five goals leads the BIG EAST, while ranking 11th in the NCAA.

• Matthew Rosenberg (3-1-1) has 26 saves between the pipes this season to go along with two shutouts. The redshirt-junior has posted nine career shutouts during his college career (transfer from Central Florida).

• Senior Samson Sergi scored two goals in the match against Eastern Illinois. The forward now has four career multi-goal matches.

• Xavier signed the No. 7 ranked recruiting class in the country by TopDrawerSoccer.com. The class consists of nine true freshmen and two transfers (Ryan Bellavance, Matthew Rosenberg).

• Xavier returns All-BIG EAST Freshman Team selection in Taylor Crull. The Carmel, Ind., native made all 19 starts at center back and helped the team post five shutouts.

• Xavier has had 21 players earn All-BIG EAST honors since joining the conference (7 First Team Honorees, 7 Second Team Honorees, 7 All-Freshman Team Honorees). The Musketeers have also had two Goalkeepers of the Year and two Defensive Players of the Year. Xavier has had at least one player on the league's first team during all seven years in the BIG EAST.

XU VS NATIONALLY RANKED TEAMS

• Xavier has faced 33 United Soccer Coaches-ranked opponents since Andy Fleming took over the program in 2010. The Musketeers have posted an 12-14-8 record during that span.

• The Musketeers are 8-2-2 against USC Top-10 teams since 2010, including wins at No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 1 Creighton in 2015. In 2014, the Musketeers claimed victories against No. 5 Indiana and No. 8 Georgetown on the way to the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 berth.

COACH FLEMING NOTABLES

• Coach Fleming is the winningest coach in program history with a 101-55-31 (.623) record.

• Coach Fleming has led the Musketeers to four NCAA Tournament appearances. The Musketeers made the NCAA Tournament in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014.

PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST

• Senior Samson Sergi was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Ashburn, Va., native, was named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team last season after leading the team in goals (9), while adding three assists.

PRESEASON BIG EAST POLL

1. Georgetown (9) - 81 pts.
2. Creighton - 68
3. Providence - 65
4. Marquette (1) - 59
5. Xavier - 44
6. Butler - 40
7. St. John's - 33
8. Seton Hall - 28
9. DePaul - 21
10. Villanova - 11
First place votes in ( )

NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE NOTES

• The Musketeers will play five of their eight non-conference matches at home.

• Xavier has posted a 33-22-13 (.581) non-conference record since 2013. The Musketeers have recorded an 20-7-4 (.710) record at home in those matches.

XU SOCCER PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

• Xavier men's soccer has reached the NCAA Tournament in four of the last nine seasons.

• The Musketeers have won 10 or more matches in seven of the last nine seasons.

• Xavier was the only program in the nation with five consecutive major conference awards from 2012-16, including 2016 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Cory Brown.

• XU has qualified for six consecutive BIG EAST Championships, including trips to the title game in 2014 and 2017.

• XU has been ranked in the nation's top-10 three times in the last six years by the United Soccer Coaches. The Musketeers have been nationally-ranked in at least one major college soccer poll (United Soccer Coaches, Top Drawer Soccer, College Soccer News, Soccer America) in every season since 2011.

• In 2015, XU knocked off the national No. 1 (Creighton) and No. 2 (Notre Dame) on the road. The Musketeers are widely believed to be the first program to ever knock off both a No. 1 and a No. 2 on the road in the same season.

• Four XU players have been selected in the MLS SuperDraft in the last seven years, including 2018 third rounder Cory Brown.

XAVIER AT HOME

• The Musketeers are 20-6-5 (.726) at home since the start of the 2016 season.

• Xavier is 60-19-10 (.730) at the XU Soccer Complex since Andy Fleming took over the program in 2010.

UP NEXT

• Xavier travels to IUPUI on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m.

ANDY FLEMING INTERVIEW

Schedule

Upcoming Events