DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Oct. 24, 2022) – The No. 14 Mercy College men's soccer team plays at University of Bridgeport on Wednesday, October 26th at 4 p.m.

Who, When and Where

Date/Time: Wednesday, October 26th 4 p.m.

Records: No. 14 Mercy (10-2-3), Bridgeport (10-4-3)

Location: Bridgeport, Conn.

Last Meeting vs. Bridgeport

Bridgeport earned a 2-1 win over Mercy on September 29, 2021.

Scouting the Mavericks

Mercy is coming off a 1-0 win over East Stroudsburg last Tuesday. The Mavericks were led by sophomore Martin Penafiel who scored the game-winning goal in the 54th minute and by junior Daniel Rodriguez who assisted on the game-winning goal. Penafiel was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. On October 11th, sophomore Eirik Elvestad was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week and freshman Mathias Schilbred-Eriksen was tabbed Rookie of the Week. Mercy looks to continue their best start since the 2019 season and have surpassed their win total from last season. Mercy is ranked No. 14 nationally in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll and second in the East Region according to the United Soccer Coaches. The Mavericks are also one of 12 teams under consideration for an NCAA Tournament spot in the first Regional Rankings released last week. Senior Benjamin Van Buren was named to the ECC Honor Roll on September 19th and has been named ECC Defensive Player of the Week once. Van Buren scored the game-winning goal in the 88th minute of Mercy's season-opening win over Saint Rose on August 25th and scored the game-winning goal in the win over D'Youville on Saturday. He has three goals. Sophomore Luis Silva has a team-high six goals and 12 points. Freshman Nicolás Cerda was named ECC Rookie of the Week on September 6th and has two goals and an assist. Senior David Breitenbach has four goals and nine points and freshman Mateo Bacigalupo has one goal on the season, recording the game-winning goal in Mercy's win over New Haven on August 28th. He was named to the ECC Honor Roll on August 29th. Junior Daniel Rodriguez has 11 points on the year on three goals and five assists. Junior Carlos Fernandes has a goal and an assist on the year and Schilbred-Eriksen has a team-high six assists. Sophomore Martin Penafiel also has a goal and two assists. Baptista recorded his first collegiate goal in the win over Daemen on September 10th and has 11 points on three goals and five assists. Senior Marco Passera has scored two goals. Elvestad is 9-1-3 in goal with 35 saves, a .778 save percentage and 0.80 goals-against average. Freshman Simon Steffensen is 1-1 in net with eight saves, a .727 save percentage and 1.20 goals-against average. Mercy enters the 2022 season looking to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four seasons and qualify for the ECC Championship for the fourth time in five seasons under seventh-year head coach Pedro Velazquez. The Mavericks went 9-5-2 last season and missed qualifying for the ECC Championship due to a tiebreaker. Mercy has posted a winning record in each of Velazquez's five seasons as head coach. The Mavericks are looking to win their first ECC Championship since 2019 and were picked third in the ECC Preseason Poll. Mercy's leading returning scorer is Dalmau who had nine points on four goals and one assist in 2021. Breitenbach also returns after posting two goals and three assists. Penafiel returns after recording two goals and two assists and Van Buren and Kevin Aguilar return on defense.

Scouting the Purple Knights

Bridgeport earned a 3-1 win over Holy Family in their CACC finale on Saturday. The Purple Knights were picked eighth in the CACC Preseason Poll after going 5-7-5 last season, falling in the ECC Semifinals. This is the first year that Bridgeport is a member of the CACC. Bridgeport can be no lower than a three seed in the CACC Championship scheduled for next week. The Purple Knights are led by Maximilian Kissel who has a team-high 12 goals and 24 points. Lucas Sousa has 22 points on seven goals and a team-high eight assists and Henry Greiner has 13 points on four goals and five assists. Clement Anet is 10-4-3 in goal with 70 saves, a .795 save percentage and 1.07 goals-against average.

Next Game

Mercy resumes action on Saturday, October 29th when they host Roberts Wesleyan for Senior Day at 1:30 p.m.