University of Connecticut Athletics
Friday, August 31
Bloomington, Ind.
5:00 P.M.
University of Connecticut
vs
University of Notre Dame
No. 18 Huskies Prepare for Huge Weekend
8/29/2018 2:48:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Games Against No. 24 Notre Dame and No. 6 Indiana.
FRIDAY: LIVE STATSÂ | WHUSÂ (RADIO)
SUNDAY: LIVE STATS | BTN PLUSÂ | WHUSÂ (RADIO)
STORRS, Conn. – Coming off a pair of home victories on opening weekend, the newly-ranked No. 18 UConn men's soccer team prepares for arguably its toughest challenges of the season – heading to Bloomington, Ind., for matchups with No. 24 Notre Dame and No. 6 Indiana.
The Huskies take on the Fighting Irish on Friday at 5 p.m. ET at Jerry Yeagley Field, before facing a huge test on Sunday night against the Hoosiers at 8 p.m. ET. The matches are part of the Adidas/IU Credit Union Classic – which also includes No. 22 Dartmouth.
Sunday's match with Indiana, the national runner-up a year ago, will be streamed on BTN Plus for paid subscribers. Both contests will have radio coverage provided by 91.7 FM WHUS, with longtime announcer John Tuite on the call.
Beginning the season with just one vote in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, the Huskies vaulted to No. 18 on Tuesday after a 2-1 win over Lehigh and 1-0 victory against Niagara in the season-openers at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium. It is the fifth time in the last nine seasons that UConn starts the season at 2-0 and first time being ranked since the start of the 2017 campaign (No. 24).
Freshman defender Felix Metzler was named American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week on Monday, earning two starts for the Huskies over the weekend. It was his free kick goal in the 84th minute against the Mountain Hawks that gave UConn a win on opening night. He was part of the UConn defense that surrendered only six shots all weekend (four to Lehigh, two to Niagara).
Despite having lost the last three meetings with Notre Dame, UConn still holds a narrow 11-10-4 edge in the all-time series with the Irish. The Huskies last played the Hoosiers in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament and are 3-3-1 all-time against Indiana.
The No. 24 Fighting Irish are coming off a 1-1 draw in double-overtime with Saint Louis in their home-opener on Friday in South Bend. Notre Dame, which went 11-7-2 a year ago and reached the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament, has won the last three meetings. Notre Dame looks to replace the production of graduated All-American Jon Gallagher, who ranked second in the ACC in goals (13) and third in points (28) as a senior.
Â
The No. 6 Hoosiers, who reached their NCAA-record 19th College Cup last season and played in the national championship game, split opening weekend with a 2-1 double-OT loss to No. 5 Wake Forest and 1-0 win over No. 3 North Carolina. Indiana was unanimously voted as the favorite to win the Big Ten, according to the preseason poll, and are led by Trey Muse at goalkeeper - a sophomore who led the NCAA in shutouts (18), goals against average (.260) save percentage (.903) and minutes played by a goalie (2417:18) as a true freshman in 2017.
Â
CLASHES WITH THE RANKED
UConn will play a pair of matches against ranked opponents this weekend, with a neutral site game against No. 24 Notre Dame and road contest at No. 6 Indiana) in Bloomington, Ind. It is the first of five matches against ranked opponents for the Huskies this season, according to the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll (also Dartmouth, Akron and SMU). UConn looks for its first win over a ranked opponent since clinching the 2014 American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a 1-0 win over No. 25 USF on Nov. 1, 2014.
Â
TOUGH ON DEFENSE
Even with a different unit than last season, the UConn backline has wasted no time making an impact in the first two games against Lehigh and Niagara. The Huskies surrendered just one goal – a penalty kick – in the first 180 minutes of action. Senior defenders Jacob Hauser-Ramsey and Dylan Greenberg are the staples, with sophomore transfer Robin Lapert and Metzler joining the group, which has allowed just six total shots in two games. Depth is also key, as redshirt junior Nkosi Burgess brings a lot of playing experience as the first defender off the bench.
Â
SUNDAY: LIVE STATS | BTN PLUSÂ | WHUSÂ (RADIO)
STORRS, Conn. – Coming off a pair of home victories on opening weekend, the newly-ranked No. 18 UConn men's soccer team prepares for arguably its toughest challenges of the season – heading to Bloomington, Ind., for matchups with No. 24 Notre Dame and No. 6 Indiana.
The Huskies take on the Fighting Irish on Friday at 5 p.m. ET at Jerry Yeagley Field, before facing a huge test on Sunday night against the Hoosiers at 8 p.m. ET. The matches are part of the Adidas/IU Credit Union Classic – which also includes No. 22 Dartmouth.
Sunday's match with Indiana, the national runner-up a year ago, will be streamed on BTN Plus for paid subscribers. Both contests will have radio coverage provided by 91.7 FM WHUS, with longtime announcer John Tuite on the call.
Beginning the season with just one vote in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, the Huskies vaulted to No. 18 on Tuesday after a 2-1 win over Lehigh and 1-0 victory against Niagara in the season-openers at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium. It is the fifth time in the last nine seasons that UConn starts the season at 2-0 and first time being ranked since the start of the 2017 campaign (No. 24).
Freshman defender Felix Metzler was named American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week on Monday, earning two starts for the Huskies over the weekend. It was his free kick goal in the 84th minute against the Mountain Hawks that gave UConn a win on opening night. He was part of the UConn defense that surrendered only six shots all weekend (four to Lehigh, two to Niagara).
Despite having lost the last three meetings with Notre Dame, UConn still holds a narrow 11-10-4 edge in the all-time series with the Irish. The Huskies last played the Hoosiers in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament and are 3-3-1 all-time against Indiana.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITIONHuskies rewarded for the opening-weekend sweep, as they jump to No. 18 in the @UnitedCoaches Poll! pic.twitter.com/4grsLljHqw
— UConn Men's Soccer (@UConnMSOC) August 28, 2018
The No. 24 Fighting Irish are coming off a 1-1 draw in double-overtime with Saint Louis in their home-opener on Friday in South Bend. Notre Dame, which went 11-7-2 a year ago and reached the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament, has won the last three meetings. Notre Dame looks to replace the production of graduated All-American Jon Gallagher, who ranked second in the ACC in goals (13) and third in points (28) as a senior.
Â
The No. 6 Hoosiers, who reached their NCAA-record 19th College Cup last season and played in the national championship game, split opening weekend with a 2-1 double-OT loss to No. 5 Wake Forest and 1-0 win over No. 3 North Carolina. Indiana was unanimously voted as the favorite to win the Big Ten, according to the preseason poll, and are led by Trey Muse at goalkeeper - a sophomore who led the NCAA in shutouts (18), goals against average (.260) save percentage (.903) and minutes played by a goalie (2417:18) as a true freshman in 2017.
Â
CLASHES WITH THE RANKED
UConn will play a pair of matches against ranked opponents this weekend, with a neutral site game against No. 24 Notre Dame and road contest at No. 6 Indiana) in Bloomington, Ind. It is the first of five matches against ranked opponents for the Huskies this season, according to the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll (also Dartmouth, Akron and SMU). UConn looks for its first win over a ranked opponent since clinching the 2014 American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a 1-0 win over No. 25 USF on Nov. 1, 2014.
Â
TOUGH ON DEFENSE
Even with a different unit than last season, the UConn backline has wasted no time making an impact in the first two games against Lehigh and Niagara. The Huskies surrendered just one goal – a penalty kick – in the first 180 minutes of action. Senior defenders Jacob Hauser-Ramsey and Dylan Greenberg are the staples, with sophomore transfer Robin Lapert and Metzler joining the group, which has allowed just six total shots in two games. Depth is also key, as redshirt junior Nkosi Burgess brings a lot of playing experience as the first defender off the bench.
Â
Players Mentioned
Defense
/ Men's Soccer
Defense
/ Men's Soccer
Defense
/ Men's Soccer
Defense
/ Men's Soccer
Defense
/ Men's SoccerUConn vs. Harvard
Saturday, September 13
UConn vs. Colgate
Sunday, September 07
UConn vs. Central Connecticut
Thursday, September 04
UConn vs. Manhattan
Sunday, August 31
