DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Sept. 16, 2021) – The Mercy College men's soccer team hosts Staten Island on Saturday, September 18th at 3 p.m. in their ECC opener.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Saturday, September 18th 3 p.m.
Records: Mercy (3-1, 0-0 ECC), Staten Island (0-3, 0-0 ECC)
Location: Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.
Last Meeting
The teams last met on October 12, 2019 with Mercy earning a 1-0 win in Dobbs Ferry.
Scouting the Mavericks
The Mavericks are coming off a 1-0 win in the last minute of play against Saint Rose on Wednesday. Senior Abraham Lopez scored the game-winning goal in the 90th minute off an assist from senior Archie Jones to give Mercy the win despite playing a man down. The Mavericks are unbeaten in their last 15 home games at Mercy Field, going 13-0-2 and are ranked sixth in the latest United Soccer Coaches East Region Poll. Senior Rainiero Salas has a team-high five points on the year on two goals and one assist and junior Matthias Kuhn has a goal and an assist. Salas and Kuhn were both named to the ECC Honor Roll this week after scoring a goal with an assist in the win over Adelphi on September 8th. Jones has a goal and an assist and senior Javier Mangado also has a goal. Senior Tormod Simonsen has an assist on the year. Graduate student Felipe Baeza is 2-0 in goal for the Mavericks with three saves and a .750 save percentage in two starts. Freshman Eirik Elvestad made the start in goal against Saint Rose and is 1-1 with three saves in two starts this season.
The Mavericks are looking to defend their ECC Championship from 2019 and look to make the NCAA Tournament for the third straight year. In 2019, Mercy went 14-4-3 and won their first ECC Tournament Championship since 2004. The Mavericks were picked first in the ECC Preseason Coaches' Poll and junior Matthias Kuhn was named Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
Leading the returners is Kuhn who was named Third Team All-ECC as a freshman. Jones, Saul Melendez Kevin Aguilar, Salas, Vasco Baptista, Hamza Khan and David Sassano return from the team in 2019. Jones had four goals and five assists in 2019 and Salas had a goal and two assists. Head Coach Pedro Velazquez also welcomes nine transfers that have joined the team over the last two years. Simonsen, Mangado and Abraham Lopez and juniors Benjamin Van Buren, Marco Passera, Jens Ovreseth, David Breitenbach and Isaí Carrillo all joined the team during the 2020-21 academic year and Baeza transferred in for this year. Simonsen transferred from Seton Hill University where he had a goal and an assist in 11 starts in 2019. Mangado transfers from Wheeling University where he had a goal and two assists in 2019 in 14 starts. Lopez joins the team from Harding University where he made five starts and played in 20 games in two years. Van Buren transfers in from Division I USC Upstate where he started 12 games in 2019. Passera played at Spring Hill College in 2019 where he had an assist in 13 games and Ovreseth comes from Davis & Elkins College where he had two goals and four assists in 2019. Breitenbach posted six goals and three assists in 2019 for Barton College prior to joining Mercy. Carrillo joins the team from Notre Dame de Namur University where he started 16 games in 2019 with one assist. Baeza joins the team in 2021 from Division I USC Upstate where he went 5-4-2 in goal with 35 saves in 2020-21.
Scouting the Dolphins
Staten Island is coming off a 3-1 loss to Dominican on Wednesday. The Dolphins have opened their 2021 season with losses to East Stroudsburg, Nyack and Dominican. Staten Island was picked eighth in the ECC Coaches' Poll and is playing their first season in the ECC after transitioning from Division III. The Dolphins went 10-5-1 in 2019 as members of the CUNYAC. Staten Island has been led by freshmen Samuel Gonzaga and Shane Siegel who have both recorded a goal on the year. Freshmen Dennis Coticelli and Brandon Figueroa have added assists and freshman Omer Hamzacebi is 0-3 in goal with 24 saves.
Next Game
Mercy resumes action on Tuesday, September 21st when they host Georgian Court at 3 p.m.
