Oct. 15, 2010
Stony Brook Seawolves (7-5-2) at Vermont Catamounts (6-5-3)
Saturday, Oct. 16 | Centennial Field | Burlington, Vt. | 1 p.m.
Vermont Catamounts (6-5-3, 1-2-0 America East)
Head Coach: Jesse Cormier, seventh season
Career Record: 54-45-30
Record at Albany: Same
Stony Brook Seawolves (7-5-2, 1-1-1 America East)
Head Coach: Cesar Markovic, seventh season
Career Record: 151-124-33
Record at SBU: 55-57-21
The Matchup
Stony Brook travels to play Vermont on a crisp Saturday afternoon in a match that could significantly change the America East standings. The Seawolves come into this match with four points, good for fourth place, and Vermont has three points to put it in a tie for fifth with Hartford. A Stony Brook victory could vault it into second place with losses by Binghamton and UMBC. This is the 10th all-time meeting between the two clubs, and the Catamounts hold a slim 5-4-1 edge in the series, and Vermont is 5-0-1 against the Seawolves in Burlington, although Stony Brook did advance to the America East Tournament final in penalty kicks back in 2004. Neither team scored in its last match, and Vermont hasn't scored over its last 250 minutes played.
Scouting the Opponent
Vermont is looking to regain its early-season magic. After starting the season 6-2-3, the Catamounts have dropped three straight matches and have just four left to play. The year started out with a bang with victories over Stanford, Cornell and Siena, but Vermont has since lost to Dartmouth, Binghamton and Boston University. Nonetheless, the 2010 season is already an impressive improvement over 2009, when UVM was 1-10-5 and failed to qualify for the America East Tournament. This is a program that won the conference championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament second round as recently as 2007. Vermont is tied for third in the league in goals and goals against average. The team is offensively led by Nick O'Neill, who is tied for second in the league in goals and third in points, sporting a 6-3-15 line.
Last Time Out
Stony Brook and New Hampshire battled to a 0-0 draw last Wednesday at LaValle Stadium in what turned out to be an excellent defensive contest. Both teams racked up double digits in shots, but only a combined nine were on goal. Stefan Manz recorded his fifth shutout of the season, and UNH's Colin O'Donnell got his league-leading sixth clean sheet. Leonardo Fernandes led the Seawolves with three shots on goal.
Into the Rankings
Stony Brook has moved up in this week's BigAppleSoccer.com top 10 poll. The Seawolves have surpassed BIG EAST member St. John's into the No. 2 spot, behind only Monmouth, which is ranked No. 12 in the nation and went to the NCAA Tournament last season. The Seawolves are also knocking on the door of the NSCAA/hendrickcars.com Northeast Region poll. Two weeks ago, they were ranked No. 10, but fell out after a loss to BU. They are currently receiving votes in the poll.
Fernandes Rules the Conference Once More
On Oct. 11, Leonardo Fernandes was named America East Player of the Week for the second time this season after scoring the game-winning goal to lift Stony Brook to a 2-0 win at Albany. Fernandes is tied for second in the conference in goals and game-winning goals. He is also fifth in overall points.
Learning on the Road
Stony Brook's 2-0 win at Albany on Oct. 9 was the program's first America East road victory since Oct. 27, 2007, a 2-0 win at Maine. The Seawolves had gone 0-4-3 away from LaValle Stadium since.
A Late Bloomer
Leonardo Fernandes leads Stony Brook in goals, and all of them have been timely. All six of his goals this season have come in the 60th minute or later and three of them have been game-winners.
Timely Keeping
Stefan Manz has had a strong performance in net this season. After a shaky start, he has won six of his last nine matches (6-1-1) and has allowed only eight goals in that span. His 0-0 tie vs. New Hampshire on Oct. 13 was his fifth shutout of the season, tying him for second in America East. He is also second in saves and seventh in GAA.
Most Valuable Player
When Leonardo Fernandes scores, Stony Brook is usually in good shape. The Seawolves are 4-1-0 this season and 8-2-1 all-time when he scores a goal in a match.
Gobeil Cruz earns an accolade
Berian Gobeil Cruz was named BigAppleSoccer.com's Men's College Player of the Week on Sept. 27 after scoring a pair of goals to lead Stony Brook to a tie against Harvard and a win over Quinnipiac.
Fernandes Earns Multiple Honors
Leonardo Fernandes scored seven points the weekend of Sept. 17-19 and has been recognized for his efforts. He was named the America East Player of the Week and the SimplexGrinnell Stony Brook Athlete of the Week and was selected to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week.
Four Goals A Plenty
Stony Brook had an offensive outburst against Central Connecticut State Sept. 17, beating the Blue Devils 4-2. The four goals were the most by a Stony Brook team since putting five on the board on Sept. 11, 2005.
Beating One of the Best
On Sept. 12, the Seawolves knocked off Dartmouth 1-0 on its home field in the Dartmouth Classic Tournament. Stony Brook got a goal from Berian Gobeil Cruz in the 34th minute and keeper Stefan Manz made four saves to preserve the shutout. The victory was big for SBU considering that Dartmouth was receiving votes in last week's NSCAA/hendrickcars.com National Rankings and was fourth in the Northeast Region poll.
Looking For Two Straight
Last season was a magical one for Stony Brook as the Seawolves finished the regular season with a five-match unbeaten streak to get into the America East Tournament, where they dispatched Hartford and UMBC to win the conference title, just the second in program history. This season's squad will look to replicate that success and bring the Seawolves back to the NCAA Tournament.
