MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (September 25, 2017) –Following a five-year hiatus, the West Virginia University men’s soccer team resumes the Backyard Brawl against Pitt on Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. ET, in Pittsburgh.
Tuesday’s match at Ambrose Urbanic Field will be the 48th in the all-time series between the two teams and the first since 2011. The Mountaineers are 33-9-5 in the rivalry and are unbeaten in the last 10 games.
Fans unable to cheer on the Mountaineers in person in Pittsburgh can watch a live stream on WatchESPN.comand follow live stats at PittsburghPanthers.com. Links to the live stream and live stats can be found on themen’s soccer schedule page on WVUSports.com. Additional updates, news and notes will be available on social media by following and connecting with @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
“Pitt’s a much-improved team from a year ago,” WVU coach Marlon LeBlanc said. “Jay Vidovich is a really good friend of mine and one of the best coaches in the country. He will have his Pitt team ready. I will have my West Virginia team ready, and we’re very much looking forward to the challenge on Tuesday up in Pittsburgh. We’ll be prepared.”
Tuesday’s contest is the final of five matches in a 14-day span for the Mountaineers (6-1-2), with four of those five games coming on the road. WVU has won three in a row, capped by a 1-0 win against Dayton at home on Saturday night. Sophomore Ryan Kellogg scored the game-winner in the 90th minute as junior goalkeeper Stephen Banick had his sixth shutout of the season.
Several Mountaineers continue to rank among the nation’s leaders in several statistical categories. Senior Jad Arslan’s three game-winning goals continues to rank No. 4 nationally and No. 1 in the Mid-American Conference. He and sophomore Albert Andres-Llop are second in the MAC with four goals and third with 0.44 goals per game. Andres-Llop is fourth with 10 total points and Arslan is fifth with nine points. Junior Jorge Quintanilla ranks No. 2 in the MAC and 28th nationally with four assists, while he also is third in the conference with 0.44 assists per game.
In goal, Banick is second in the league and ninth nationally with five shutouts. He is 19th in the NCAA and second in the MAC with a 0.570 goals-against average and also ranks second in the league with a .833 save percentage and 25 total saves. He is third with 2.78 saves per game and 789:32 minutes played.
SCOUTING PITT
Pitt is 3-5 and sports a 2-1 record at home. The Panthers are 0-3 in the ACC and began conference play against three top-10 teams, with a 2-1 loss to No. 10 North Carolina, a 2-0 defeat at No. 4 Wake Forest and a 3-0 loss at No. 8 Clemson on Friday.
Jay Vidovich is in his second season at Pitt. A five-time ACC Coach of the Year and two-time NSCAA National Coach of the Year, Vidovich coached Wake Forest from 1994-2014, including a national title in 2007. He spent the 2015 season coaching the Portland Timbers 2 (T2) in the United Soccer League (USL). While he is 5-18-3 at Pitt, Vidovich’s career mark is 277-139-53.
Colin Brezniak leads the team with two goals, four points and eight shots on goal, while five players have one assist. In goal, Mikal Outcalt has a 1.08 goals-against average and has made 30 saves for a .789 save percentage with two shutouts.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE PANTHERS
West Virginia and Pitt have met 47 times, with the Mountaineers holding a 33-9-5 advantage in the all-time series. WVU is 3-0-2 against Pitt in coach Marlon LeBlanc’s 12 seasons.
The former Big East rivals last met in 2011, a 2-0 WVU win in Pittsburgh. In the last 10 meetings, West Virginia is unbeaten against Pitt, going 6-0-4 against the Panthers since 2001. The Mountaineers have won two in a row in the series, at home in 2010 and in Pittsburgh in 2011, following a pair of ties in 2008 and 2009. The first meeting was in 1962, WVU’s second season, where the Panthers posted a 5-1 home win.
UP NEXT: NO. 14 PACIFIC
The Mountaineers return home to host No. 14 Pacific on Sunday, Oct. 1, at noon ET at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, 1-800-WVU GAME or on game day at the DDSS ticket office. The match is Monongalia County School Day, and elementary and middle school students from schools in the county will be honored at halftime. Additionally, the first 250 fans in attendance will receive free WVU texting gloves.
LAST TIME OUT: 90TH-MINUTE WIN
Kellogg scored the game’s only goal in the 90th minute to send West Virginia to a 1-0 win over Dayton on Sept. 23 in front of 1,008 fans at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
Kellogg’s goal, the first of his career, came with 28 seconds remaining in the match as the Mountaineers won their third in a row. After getting out-shot 10-9, and allowing Dayton to have three shots on goal, Kellogg’s goal was the lone shot on goal in the match for WVU.
The game-winner began with a free kick from midfield by Banick. Inside the box, the Dayton defense headed it out, right to Kellogg. The ball bounced off Kellogg’s chest, he dribbled once, and at 89:32 from the edge of the box sent a ball in that weaved around the defense and found the back of the net.
Banick stopped three Dayton shots to turn in his sixth clean sheet of the season. Along with his goal, Kellogg led the Mountaineers with three shots in the contest. Arslan had two.
Single game tickets for all of WVU’s regular-season home matches are now on sale at WVUGAME.com or by calling 1-800-WVU GAME. The complete 2017 WVU men’s soccer schedule, with match times, can be foundhere. All dates and times are subject to change, and fans are encouraged to stay tuned to WVUSports.com for updates.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Tuesday’s match at Ambrose Urbanic Field will be the 48th in the all-time series between the two teams and the first since 2011. The Mountaineers are 33-9-5 in the rivalry and are unbeaten in the last 10 games.
Fans unable to cheer on the Mountaineers in person in Pittsburgh can watch a live stream on WatchESPN.comand follow live stats at PittsburghPanthers.com. Links to the live stream and live stats can be found on themen’s soccer schedule page on WVUSports.com. Additional updates, news and notes will be available on social media by following and connecting with @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
“Pitt’s a much-improved team from a year ago,” WVU coach Marlon LeBlanc said. “Jay Vidovich is a really good friend of mine and one of the best coaches in the country. He will have his Pitt team ready. I will have my West Virginia team ready, and we’re very much looking forward to the challenge on Tuesday up in Pittsburgh. We’ll be prepared.”
Tuesday’s contest is the final of five matches in a 14-day span for the Mountaineers (6-1-2), with four of those five games coming on the road. WVU has won three in a row, capped by a 1-0 win against Dayton at home on Saturday night. Sophomore Ryan Kellogg scored the game-winner in the 90th minute as junior goalkeeper Stephen Banick had his sixth shutout of the season.
Several Mountaineers continue to rank among the nation’s leaders in several statistical categories. Senior Jad Arslan’s three game-winning goals continues to rank No. 4 nationally and No. 1 in the Mid-American Conference. He and sophomore Albert Andres-Llop are second in the MAC with four goals and third with 0.44 goals per game. Andres-Llop is fourth with 10 total points and Arslan is fifth with nine points. Junior Jorge Quintanilla ranks No. 2 in the MAC and 28th nationally with four assists, while he also is third in the conference with 0.44 assists per game.
In goal, Banick is second in the league and ninth nationally with five shutouts. He is 19th in the NCAA and second in the MAC with a 0.570 goals-against average and also ranks second in the league with a .833 save percentage and 25 total saves. He is third with 2.78 saves per game and 789:32 minutes played.
SCOUTING PITT
Pitt is 3-5 and sports a 2-1 record at home. The Panthers are 0-3 in the ACC and began conference play against three top-10 teams, with a 2-1 loss to No. 10 North Carolina, a 2-0 defeat at No. 4 Wake Forest and a 3-0 loss at No. 8 Clemson on Friday.
Jay Vidovich is in his second season at Pitt. A five-time ACC Coach of the Year and two-time NSCAA National Coach of the Year, Vidovich coached Wake Forest from 1994-2014, including a national title in 2007. He spent the 2015 season coaching the Portland Timbers 2 (T2) in the United Soccer League (USL). While he is 5-18-3 at Pitt, Vidovich’s career mark is 277-139-53.
Colin Brezniak leads the team with two goals, four points and eight shots on goal, while five players have one assist. In goal, Mikal Outcalt has a 1.08 goals-against average and has made 30 saves for a .789 save percentage with two shutouts.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE PANTHERS
West Virginia and Pitt have met 47 times, with the Mountaineers holding a 33-9-5 advantage in the all-time series. WVU is 3-0-2 against Pitt in coach Marlon LeBlanc’s 12 seasons.
The former Big East rivals last met in 2011, a 2-0 WVU win in Pittsburgh. In the last 10 meetings, West Virginia is unbeaten against Pitt, going 6-0-4 against the Panthers since 2001. The Mountaineers have won two in a row in the series, at home in 2010 and in Pittsburgh in 2011, following a pair of ties in 2008 and 2009. The first meeting was in 1962, WVU’s second season, where the Panthers posted a 5-1 home win.
UP NEXT: NO. 14 PACIFIC
The Mountaineers return home to host No. 14 Pacific on Sunday, Oct. 1, at noon ET at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, 1-800-WVU GAME or on game day at the DDSS ticket office. The match is Monongalia County School Day, and elementary and middle school students from schools in the county will be honored at halftime. Additionally, the first 250 fans in attendance will receive free WVU texting gloves.
LAST TIME OUT: 90TH-MINUTE WIN
Kellogg scored the game’s only goal in the 90th minute to send West Virginia to a 1-0 win over Dayton on Sept. 23 in front of 1,008 fans at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
Kellogg’s goal, the first of his career, came with 28 seconds remaining in the match as the Mountaineers won their third in a row. After getting out-shot 10-9, and allowing Dayton to have three shots on goal, Kellogg’s goal was the lone shot on goal in the match for WVU.
The game-winner began with a free kick from midfield by Banick. Inside the box, the Dayton defense headed it out, right to Kellogg. The ball bounced off Kellogg’s chest, he dribbled once, and at 89:32 from the edge of the box sent a ball in that weaved around the defense and found the back of the net.
Banick stopped three Dayton shots to turn in his sixth clean sheet of the season. Along with his goal, Kellogg led the Mountaineers with three shots in the contest. Arslan had two.
Single game tickets for all of WVU’s regular-season home matches are now on sale at WVUGAME.com or by calling 1-800-WVU GAME. The complete 2017 WVU men’s soccer schedule, with match times, can be foundhere. All dates and times are subject to change, and fans are encouraged to stay tuned to WVUSports.com for updates.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.