Photo Courtesy of Mike Dickie
Posted: Oct 23, 2020
Game #4
Siena Heights Saints (1-2, 1-2 WHAC)
AT
Cornerstone Golden Eagles (1-2, 1-1 WHAC)
Saturday, October 24, 2020
CU Soccer Stadium | Grand Rapids, Mich. | 7 PM
Upcoming for Saints Soccer: The Saints wrap up the fall portion of the schedule this Saturday on the road against Cornerstone. The game kicks off at 7:00 PM.
Broadcasting: Saturday's game will be streamed at 7:00 PM on the Cornerstone Sports Network: https://cugoldeneagles.com/watch/?Archive=558&type=Live
Fans can also follow live stats through the Cornerstone Athletics Website: http://www.sidearmstats.com/cornerstone/msoc
Head Coach Andrew Crawford: In his third season on the Saints bench, Crawford has a 14-24-2 overall record and an 8-15-2 conference record at the helm of the Saints as well as overall as a head coach. He was an assistant coach for the Siena Heights women's soccer program for six seasons (2012-2017).
Wrapping Up Last Week: The Saints set the pace for the game early on dominating possession of the ball and had a couple of big scoring opportunities but came up short. Concordia earned a penalty shot off a Siena yellow card that was in the box and Brett Kuhlman found the back of the net to give them the 1-0 lead. The Cardinals had a few other big scoring opportunities in the first half but Andrew Kozan made the saves to keep the game close. The second half was much the same as the first half as the Saints continued to dominate possession. Concordia increased their lead 2-0 as Jordan Whitt took a shot but Kozan made the deflecting save and Nyle Ellis found the back of the net off the rebound. Siena had a couple of big scoring opportunities but was unable to find the back of the net as Ryan Webb helped secure the win for the Cardinals.
Series Notes: Siena Heights leads the all-time series against Cornerstone 25-22-9 dating back to August 1st, 1980. The Saints won against the Golden Eagles last season 2-0 at O'Laughlin Stadium on Wednesday, October 16th. This will be Siena's 17th appearance at CU Soccer Stadium in Grand Rapids, Mich. with that home series swaying towards Cornerstone 10-4-2. The biggest margin between the two teams was when the Golden Eagles beat the Saints 8-0 in their first matchup ever.
Sizing up Cornerstone: The Golden Eagles have a 1-2 start to the season. They lost to Lourdes (0-3) on Oct. 3rd, won against Concordia (5-0) on Oct. 10, and lost to Olivet Nazarene University (0-4) on Oct. 21. Roberto Razo, David Mawi, Luke Blickley, Nate Kaercher, and Logan Johns each have recorded a goal. Razo, Mawi, David Dwumfour-Poku, Allan Barrientos, and Christian Galloway each have earned an assist. Razo and Mawi respectively lead the team in points (3). Mawi leads the team in shots (6) and shots on goal (3). Alan Mendoza had started all three games between the pipes for Cornerstone and had recorded 11 saves, a save percentage of 0.611 and a record of 1-2.
Top Saints: Remy Collard and Gustavo Barros respectively lead the team in goals (1) and points (2). Collard's goal was also game-winning in the win over Lourdes on Oct.10. Uthman Babatunde leads the team in assists (1). Collard and Barros also respectively lead the team in shots (5). Artur Becker leads the team in shots on goal (4). Andrew Kozan had started all three games in net for Siena earning 21 saves, a save percentage of .778, and a 1-2 record.
Change of Plans: Due to Covid-19, the Saints have had to adapt and because of this, half of their season will be played out in the spring due to many teams in the WHAC deciding to move their entire season to the Spring. The NAIA has also moved all fall championships to the spring 2021 season as well.
