No. 13 Men's Soccer Plays Host to Creighton on Wednesday Night

Wednesday, October 12

Cincinnati, Ohio

7 p.m.

Xavier University

Creighton

No. 13 Men's Soccer Plays Host to Creighton on Wednesday Night

10.11.22 | Men's Soccer

Live Stats Watch Live

First touch is set for 7 p.m. from Corcoran Field

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier men's soccer continues BIG EAST action on Wednesday, Oct. 12 vs Creighton. First touch is set for 7 p.m. from Corcoran Field.

THE MATCHUP VS CREIGHTON

NO. 13 XAVIER MUSKETEERS (8-0-4, 2-0-3) vs CREIGHTON BLUEJAYS (4-2-4, 1-1-2)
Game Info - Wednesday, Oct. 12 - 7 p.m. ET - Corcoran Field (1,000)
Live Stats - bit.ly/2Pzr1JH
Watch Live (BEDN) - flosports.link/3dUulj6

ABOUT CREIGHTON

2022 Record: 4-2-4 (1-1-2 BIG EAST)
Series History: Xavier trails, 3-8-1
Last Meeting: CU 2, XU 0 (Oct. 20, 2021 - Omaha, Neb.)

NOTABLES
• Creighton was picked to finish fourth in the Preseason BIG EAST Coaches' Poll after posting a 9-8-2 (5-4-1 BIG EAST) record last year. Charles Auguste and Paul Kruse were both named to the preseason all-conference team. Kruse was also tabbed the preseason goalkeeper of the year.
• Creighton is coming off a 1-1 tie vs St. John's on Oct. 8 in Omaha, Neb. Wednesday's match is only the third road match for the Bluejays this season (1-1 in road matches this year).
• Creighton leads the BIG EAST in goals (29), assists (27) and shots (193). Duncan McGuire leads the BIG EAST in goals (8), while teammates Owen O'Malley and Jackson Castro rank tied for third with six.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier has dropped three in a row vs the Bluejays, most recently a 2-0 loss in Omaha on Oct. 20, 2021. The Musketeers are looking for their first win vs Creighton since Oct. 11, 2019 (W, 1-0 in Cincinnati).

• The Musketeers are 2-2-1 when playing Creighton in Cincinnati. Creighton won the last meeting in Cincinnati, 3-0, on March 24, 2021.

XU IN THE TOP-25

• Xavier ranks No. 13 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll as announced on Oct. 11. The Musketeers entered the poll this season on Sept. 6 (as No. 25), the team's first time being ranked since Sept. 17, 2019. Xavier ranked as high as No. 12 in the poll on Oct. 4, the highest ranking for the Musketeers since being ranked No. 11 on Sept. 10, 2019.

• Xavier is the only BIG EAST team ranked in the poll this week, while Butler is receiving votes. The Musketeers also rank No. 34 in the first NCAA RPI Standings of the season.

BIG EAST HONOREES

• Dylan Kropp was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Monday afternoon. Cole Jensen was also named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.

2022 BIG EAST HONOREES
Dylan Kropp - Defensive Player of the Week - Oct. 10
Cole Jensen - Weekly Honor Roll - Oct. 10
Cole Jensen - Weekly Honor Roll - Oct. 3
Cameron Wheeler - Weekly Honor Roll - Oct. 3
Makel Rasheed - Weekly Honor Roll - Sept. 26
Cameron Wheeler - Offensive Player of the Week - Sept. 19
Makel Rasheed - Weekly Honor Roll - Sept. 12
Cole Jensen - Weekly Honor Roll - Sept. 12
Cole Jensen - Weekly Honor Roll - Sept. 5
Cole Jensen - Weekly Honor Roll - Aug. 29
Brandon Osterholt - Weekly Honor Roll - Aug. 29

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off a 2-1 win at Villanova. The Musketeers found the back of the net in the 89th minute via a Nicolas Hald Willumsen goal.

• Villanova's goal in the 34th minute was the first goal the Musketeers have allowed in 382 minutes. The last time Xavier allowed a goal was on Sept. 20 at Evansville. It was only the third, first-half goal allowed by the Musketeers this season.

• Xavier and Villanova both entered the break with six shots (four on goal). The Musketeers controlled the second half as they limited the Wildcats to only two shots (zero on goal). Xavier had seven shots (five shots on goal) in the second half.

• Alejandro Steinwascher scored his first goal of the season on a diving header via a cross from Dominik Kurija in the 62nd minute. The UIndy transfer now has 39 career goals.

• Nicolas Hald Willumsen's goal in the 89th minute was his second goal of the season and the first-game winning goal of his career. The freshman was one of three players with three shots in the match. Hald Willumsen, Alvaro Heredia and Alejandro Steinwascher all had three shots (two on goal).

• Dominik Kurija is one of five Musketeers with two or more assists on the year. The junior defender now has three assists on the season.

• Xavier took five more shots (13-8) than the Wildcats and five more shots on goal (9-4). The Musketeers committed one more foul (13-12), while Villanova took four more corner kicks (7-3).

• Cole Jensen (8-0-4) made three saves in goal. Dylan Kropp and Jensen were the only Musketeers to play all 90 minutes.

NOTABLES

• Xavier has had nine different players score a goal this season, paced by Fabrizio Bernal De La Garza and Jerome Jolly who each have three goals.

• Xavier's 12-match unbeaten streak to start the season is the longest unbeaten streak to start a season since 2012 (The Musketeers started the year 10-0-4 before losing a match).

• Xavier concluded non-conference action unbeaten for the first time since 2012 (The Musketeers went 7-0-2 in non-conference action).

• Xavier is the only men's soccer team in the BIG EAST without a loss this season. The Musketeers are one of seven teams in the country without a loss this year (Washington, Kentucky, Portland, Dayton, Duke, Xavier, UMass).

BIG EAST STATS

• Xavier leads the BIG EAST in goals against average (0.50) and shutouts (7), while ranking fourth in total saves (36). The Musketeers rank tied for sixth in the NCAA in goals against average.

• Xavier has only allowed six goals this season, the fewest in the BIG EAST. Two of those six goals were via penalty kick. The six goals allowed are tied for the fifth fewest goals allowed in the NCAA.

• Cole Jensen ranks tied for sixth in the NCAA in goals against average (0.50) and saves percentage (0.86). His seven shutouts ranks tied for third in the NCAA.

SCHEDULE NOTES

• Xavier has posted a 50-26-14 (.633) non-conference record since 2013. The Musketeers have recorded an 27-8-5 (.738) record at home in those matches.

• Xavier is 70-29-13 (.683) at Corcoran Field since the start of the 2010 season.

• Xavier played seven non-conference matches, three at home and four on the road. The Musketeers opened the home portion of their schedule vs Eastern Illinois on Sunday, Aug. 28. Xavier also played home non-conference matches vs Robert Morris (Sept. 4) and Pacific (Sept. 9). The meeting vs Pacific was the first in program history.

• Xavier also has non-conference road matches at Memphis (Sept. 1), Northern Kentucky (Sept. 12) and Evansville (Sept. 20).

• The Musketeers opened BIG EAST action vs Seton Hall on Saturday, Sept. 17 at Corcoran Field. Xavier's other four home BIG EAST contests are vs Marquette (Sept. 24), UConn (Oct. 1), Creighton (Oct. 12) and Providence (Oct. 29).

• Xavier will face five teams (all from the BIG EAST) that played in the NCAA Tournament last season, including College Cup participant Georgetown. St. John's, Providence, Creighton and Villanova all joined the Hoyas in the NCAA Tournament - the first time since 2013 that the BIG EAST had five teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

• Xavier returns four of its top five point leaders from last season, led by Justus Kauppinen who scored three goals and added four assists. The Musketeers also return Jerome Jolly (three goals, one assist), Taylor Rhinehart (one goal, three assists).

• Xavier added 18 newcomers to the roster, including four University of Indianapolis transfers: Eli Dulle (four goals, four assists), Brandon Osterholt, Makel Rasheed (five goals, three assists), Alejandro Steinwascher (14 goals, 10 assists).

• Lotem Ben Dov and Pol Hernandez will serve as team captains this season. Ben Dov missed the fall 2021 season with an injury, while Hernandez played in all 17 matches.

NEW HEAD COACH

• John Higgins was named the new men's soccer coach in March of 2022. He joined the Musketeers from the University of Indianapolis where he compiled a 150-56-29 overall record in 12 seasons with the Greyhounds.

• Higgins finished the 2021 fall season ranked fourth in the United Soccer Coaches (USC) Top-25 Poll after posting an 18-1-3 record and advancing to the semifinals of the NCAA Championships. All told, he posted a 31-1-7 record over two seasons in 2021 (spring season due to COVID-19 pandemic).

• The three-time Great Lakes Valley Conference 'Coach of the Year' owns a 7-3-1 (.625) record in NCAA Tournament action and finished GLVC Tournament play with an 18-3-5 (.750) mark. He finished his coaching career at UIndy as the program's all-time leader in wins (150) and winning percentage (.700).

• Higgins led the Greyhounds to a total of six conference championships from 2010-21, including three regular-season titles and three tournament championships. All told, he has made five NCAA Tournaments with two national semifinal appearances.

• The Dunfermline, United Kingdom, native coached 54 All-GLVC selections at UIndy along with seven All-Midwest Region honorees and two All-Americans. Academically, the Greyhounds have earned the USC Team Academic Award in each season under Higgins.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

• Xavier men's soccer has reached the NCAA Tournament in four of the last 12 seasons. The Musketeers have also won 10 or more matches in seven of the last 12 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 of the last nine 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 nine 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 10 years, including 2018 third rounder Cory Brown.

PRESEASON COACHES' POLL