The Emory University Men's Soccer Team's campaign will come down to its regular season finale on Saturday, November 9th at 11:00 AM, as the Eagles will play 13th-ranked Carnegie Mellon University at the Woodruff Physical Education Center for at least a share of the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship and possibly an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Senior Day
Prior to the start of Saturday's game, Emory will honor its lone graduating player, Andrew Jones, with a special 'Senior Day' ceremony. Jones has played in 70 games during his career, scoring 11 goals and 13 assists for 35 points, including two goals and four assists for eight points this season.
Coverage
Fans unable to attend Saturday's match can follow the action with live statistics, available at http://www.go.emory.edu/LiveStats/MSocc/XLIVE.HTM, and a live video webcast at http://emoryathletics.com/sports/msoc/live.
UAA Update
With the UAA's automatic bid awarded to the winner of the conference's regular season, three teams – Emory, Carnegie Mellon and the 12th-ranked University of Rochester – are each tied for first with one game left to play. Emory could win the UAA Championship outright and earn the automatic bid with a win on Saturday, along with a Rochester loss or tie at Case Western Reserve University. The Eagles could also share the conference title with either a win and a Rochester win, or a tie and a Rochester loss or tie, but would only claim the conference's automatic bid with a tie and a Rochester loss, claiming a tiebreaker over Carnegie Mellon based on goal differential.
Rochester will play at Case at 5:00 PM on Saturday.
Emory Eagles
Emory, ranked seventh in the South Atlantic Region, will enter Saturday's game with an overall record of 11-5-1, including a 4-1-1 mark in UAA games and a 6-2-1 record at home this year. The Eagles have outscored their opposition by a 35-19 margin, and are currently ranked 107th among Division III teams with an average of 2.06 goals per game and 140th with a 1.10 goals-against average.
The Eagles are led by seventh-year head coach Sonny Travis, who has guided the squad to a record of 90-32-8, two UAA Championships and four trips to the NCAA Tournament during his time with the team. For his 28-year coaching career, he holds an overall record of 384-124-45, the 18th-most victories among Division III coaches all-time. Travis is assisted by Cory Greiner, goalkeeper coach Clayton Schmitt and volunteer assistant Wesley Lutz.
Carnegie Mellon Tartans
The Tartans will enter the game ranked 13th in the latest NSCAA/ Continental Tire NCAA Division III poll, 11th in the D3Soccer.com poll, and second in the NSCAA Great Lakes Region poll. The squad has gone 4-0-1 in its last five games and stands at 11-2-2 overall this season, including a 5-1-1 mark in road games. Carnegie Mellon has been one of the top defensive teams in the country this season, ranking 25th among Division III teams with a 0.64 team goals-against average, while the squad has averaged 1.73 goals per game, the 192nd-best mark among D-III squads. The Tartans have scored 26 goals this season, led by six apiece from seniors Max Tassano and Chris Wysocki, while the defense has conceded just 10 goals for the year. Senior goalkeeper Christopher Madden has started 13 games this season, and ranks 49th among D-III players with a 0.757 goals-against average and 106th with a .800 save percentage.
The Tartans are coached by Arron Lujan, a former assistant of Emory's Sonny Travis while both were at Virginia Wesleyan College. Lujan has a record of 73-24-7 during his six seasons with the team. He is assisted by Michael Piranian and Brandon Regan.
Matchup History
This will be the second-straight year that Emory and Carnegie will play each other for the UAA Championship in the final game of the regular season. In 2012, the Eagles claimed a 1-0 win over the Tartans in Pittsburgh, PA behind a goal from Sebastian Hardington in the 72nd minute, and a strong defensive effort that limited Carnegie Mellon to just seven shots and two on goal. The Emory win forced a four-way tie for the conference title between Emory, Carnegie Mellon, Washington (Mo.) and Brandeis.
Emory is 11-12-3 all-time against Carnegie Mellon, but has a winning record in matches played at the Woodruff Physical Education Center with a 7-4-2 mark.
Emory Notes
The Eagles' .676 won-lost-tied percentage is the 93rd-best mark among the 408 ranked NCAA Division III teams this season… Emory is also 37th among D-III teams with 2.0 assists per game… Emory is 2-1-1 against teams currently ranked or receiving votes in the latest NSCAA/ Continental Tire NCAA Division III Men's Soccer poll… Junior co-captain Dylan Price leads all UAA players in goals (10) and points (24) this season… Junior Jeffrey Cochran is third in the conference with seven assists and 47th among all Division III players with 0.47 assists per game this season… Goalkeeper Abe Hannigan leads all UAA players with 56 saves in 2013, and ranks 140th among D-III keepers with a 1.113 goals-against average… Emory's defense has conceded just five goals in its six UAA matches this season, the fewest in the conference.