DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Sept. 19, 2022) – The No. 24 Mercy College men's soccer team hosts Queens College on Wednesday, September 21st at 3 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Wednesday, September 21st 3 p.m.
Records: No. 24 Mercy (6-1-1, 2-0 ECC), Queens (6-2, 2-0 ECC)
Location: Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. Queens
Mercy earned a 4-2 win over Queens on October 22, 2021.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy is coming off a 3-0 win over D'Youville on Saturday. The Mavericks were led by sophomore Luís Silva who had a game-high two goals and by senior Benjamin Van Buren who also scored. Sophomore Eirik Elvestad made three saves in the first half to earn the win. Mercy looks to get off to their best start since 2019 when they started 7-1-1. The Mavericks are looking to start 3-0 in ECC play for the first time since 2019. Mercy is 6-7-1 in their last 14 meetings against Queens dating back to 2007 and have won the last four meetings. Mercy is ranked No. 24 nationally in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll. Senior Benjamin Van Buren was named to the ECC Honor Roll on Monday 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 a team-high three goals. Freshman Nicolás Cerda was named ECC Rookie of the Week on September 6th and has two goals. 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 a team-high seven points on the year on two goals and three assists. Junior Carlos Fernandes has a goal and an assist on the year and freshman Mathias Schilbred-Eriksen has a team-high four assists. Sophomore Martin Penafiel also has an assist. Baptista recorded his first collegiate goal in the win over Daemen on September 10th and has an assist. Elvestad is 5-0-1 in goal with 11 saves, a .733 save percentage and 0.73 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. Senior David 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 Knights
Queens earned a 3-0 win over Daemen on Saturday for their fourth win in a row. The Knights were picked sixth in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 8-8 last season overall and 3-6 in ECC play. Queens is led by Adolfo Martinez Paquet who has a team-high 11 points on a team-high five goals with one assist. He was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday. Bryce Cherry is second on the team with three goals and Leo Pinto, David Oprea and Thomas Esperoe all have two goals. Pinto and Juan Monge Allue both have a team-high two assists on the year. Dario Cruz is 6-2 in goal with 27 saves, a .711 save percentage and 1.41 goals-against average in eight starts. He was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.
Next Game
Mercy resumes action on Saturday, September 24th when they play at Molloy at 12 p.m.
