The FGCU men's soccer team will be tested from the start as the Eagles hit the road to start the 2019 season against No. 13 Michigan and No. 7 Michigan State.
The Green and Blue:
This will be the fourth-straight year the squad starts its season on the road as head coach Jesse Cormier enters his third year at the helm. In 2018, the Eagles produced a 9-5-2 (5-1-0) record, collecting their seventh overall A-SUN regular season crown while making it to the A-SUN Tournament for an eighth-straight year.
FGCU returns its three A-SUN First Team members in senior Shak Adams, sophomore O'Vonte Mullings (Freshman of the Year), and redshirt junior Gustavo Vasconcelos (Goalkeeper of the Year). Adams led the team in goals (eight) and assists (eight), Mullings was second with seven goals. Keeper Vasconcelos secured 62 saves with three clean sheets as he led the A-SUN in save percentage (.782).
Overall, the Eagles are 3-3-1 against Big 10 opponents.
Scouting the Wolverines:
Michigan went 12-5-4 (4-2-2 Big 10) in 2018 with a second round appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Wolverines return 18 players from last season's roster, including five who started at least 10 matches. Senior Jack Hallahan netted eight goals and assists apiece last year as he was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List earlier this summer.
TopDrawerSoccer.com has the Wolverines ranked No. 13 while the United Soccer Coaches poll has them at No. 24.
This will be the second all-time meeting between both programs as they battled to a 2-2 draw in 2016 at the Nest.
Scouting the Spartans:
Michigan State is coming off a historical season producing an overall record of 14-5-4 (4-2-2 Big 10), advancing to the NCAA College Cup for the first time since 1968. Giuseppe Barone returns as he led the Spartans with 10 assists and was second in points (16). He went on to earn First Team All-American Honors.
The United Soccer Coaches poll have the Spartans ranked No. 7, meanwhile, TopDrawerSoccer.com have them one spot above at No. 8.
This will be the first all-time meeting between both programs.
Livestats will be available for both matches and will air on the Big 10 Network Plus.
Livestats Link vs Michigan: https://mgoblue.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary
Livestats Link vs Michigan State: https://admin.msuspartans.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary
Livestream Link vs #13 Michigan: https://www.btnplus.com/game/florida-gulf-coast-at-michigan-on-08302019-1
Livestream Link vs Michigan State: https://www.btnplus.com/game/florida-gulf-coast-at-michigan-st-on-09022019
No comments:
Post a Comment