Lehigh University Athletics
Tuesday, October 29
Bethlehem, Pa.
7 p.m.
Lehigh University
vs
Rutgers
Photo by: Justin Lafleur
Lehigh remains home, hosts Big Ten opponent Rutgers Tuesday night
10/28/2019 4:39:00 PM | Men's Soccer
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — With two of the next three games remaining on the schedule to be played at home, Lehigh men's soccer remains at the Ulrich Sports Complex on Tuesday evening for a non-league battle with Big Ten foe Rutgers at 7 p.m. This will be Lehigh's third Big Ten opponent of the season after playing the first road-trip of the year in Evanston, Ill. against Northwestern and Wisconsin.
Lehigh is coming off a scoreless draw against Lafayette Saturday night at home, where senior goalkeeper Will Smith and the Mountain Hawk defense registered their seventh shutout of the campaign, extending the team's Patriot League shutout streak to four straight matchups. Lehigh is currently undefeated in league play at 5-0-2 and the team's only losses since the middle of September have been to now No. 7 Georgetown on Oct. 8 and Princeton on Oct. 15.
Lehigh's offense weren't able to get a goal against the Leopards on Saturday night, but managed to score a couple against Navy last weekend, off the feet of sophomore forward Josh Luchini and junior midfielder Trevor Koski. For Luchini, he has already reached the 10 goal mark for the season along with an assist which totals 21 points, second in the league. Luchini also leads the Mountain Hawks in shots (36) and shots on goal (20). Smith has been excellent in goal this season with 51 saves on 153 shots faced with a 0.76 goals against average and a save percentage of .823. He's allowed just 11 goals over 1300:44 minutes and has amassed seven clean sheets.
As a team, Lehigh is averaging 1.27 goals per game, holding opponents to a mark of 0.93, while tallying 12.1 shots per game and a shots on goal percentage of .401.
Rutgers was a nationally ranked program at one point this season, but has struggled since Big Ten play has begun with a conference record of 1-5-1. However, the Scarlet Knights are 7-5-3 on the season despite not winning a decision since Oct. 11 vs. Wisconsin. Last Friday night, Rutgers fell at No. 10 Indiana, 3-0 following a 2-0 defeat to Northwestern on Oct. 20.
The Scarlet Knights' offense is led by Pablo Avila, who has registered 14 points on six goals and two assists. He also leads the team in shots (35) and shots on goal (17) in 13 games played. He, along with Jackson Temple, lead the team in game-winning goals with two each this year. Four players, Thomas DeVizio, Nick Cruz, Valentino Ambrosio and Avila have all tallied two assists. Goalkeeper Oren Asher had played and started in 15 games this season with a goals against average of 1.41, making 49 saves and registering three shutouts. Rutgers has averaged 1.20 goals per game this season, with a shot percentage of .121 and 9.9 shots per contest. The Scarlet Knights have allowed 1.33 goals per game to the opposition this season with 11.1 shots per game.
Rutgers leads the all-time series over Lehigh, 26-21-4, with the Mountain Hawks coming out on top in the last matchup on Sept. 1, 2010, 3-0 at the Ulrich Sports Complex. Lehigh has won the previous two matchups with the Scarlet Knights dating back to Sept. 14, 2007 by a combined score of 5-1.
Tuesday's game will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network and over-the-top on Stadium with coverage beginning at 7 p.m.
Like Lehigh Men's Soccer on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Lehigh is coming off a scoreless draw against Lafayette Saturday night at home, where senior goalkeeper Will Smith and the Mountain Hawk defense registered their seventh shutout of the campaign, extending the team's Patriot League shutout streak to four straight matchups. Lehigh is currently undefeated in league play at 5-0-2 and the team's only losses since the middle of September have been to now No. 7 Georgetown on Oct. 8 and Princeton on Oct. 15.
Lehigh's offense weren't able to get a goal against the Leopards on Saturday night, but managed to score a couple against Navy last weekend, off the feet of sophomore forward Josh Luchini and junior midfielder Trevor Koski. For Luchini, he has already reached the 10 goal mark for the season along with an assist which totals 21 points, second in the league. Luchini also leads the Mountain Hawks in shots (36) and shots on goal (20). Smith has been excellent in goal this season with 51 saves on 153 shots faced with a 0.76 goals against average and a save percentage of .823. He's allowed just 11 goals over 1300:44 minutes and has amassed seven clean sheets.
As a team, Lehigh is averaging 1.27 goals per game, holding opponents to a mark of 0.93, while tallying 12.1 shots per game and a shots on goal percentage of .401.
Rutgers was a nationally ranked program at one point this season, but has struggled since Big Ten play has begun with a conference record of 1-5-1. However, the Scarlet Knights are 7-5-3 on the season despite not winning a decision since Oct. 11 vs. Wisconsin. Last Friday night, Rutgers fell at No. 10 Indiana, 3-0 following a 2-0 defeat to Northwestern on Oct. 20.
The Scarlet Knights' offense is led by Pablo Avila, who has registered 14 points on six goals and two assists. He also leads the team in shots (35) and shots on goal (17) in 13 games played. He, along with Jackson Temple, lead the team in game-winning goals with two each this year. Four players, Thomas DeVizio, Nick Cruz, Valentino Ambrosio and Avila have all tallied two assists. Goalkeeper Oren Asher had played and started in 15 games this season with a goals against average of 1.41, making 49 saves and registering three shutouts. Rutgers has averaged 1.20 goals per game this season, with a shot percentage of .121 and 9.9 shots per contest. The Scarlet Knights have allowed 1.33 goals per game to the opposition this season with 11.1 shots per game.
Rutgers leads the all-time series over Lehigh, 26-21-4, with the Mountain Hawks coming out on top in the last matchup on Sept. 1, 2010, 3-0 at the Ulrich Sports Complex. Lehigh has won the previous two matchups with the Scarlet Knights dating back to Sept. 14, 2007 by a combined score of 5-1.
Tuesday's game will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network and over-the-top on Stadium with coverage beginning at 7 p.m.
Like Lehigh Men's Soccer on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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