NEWARK, NJ— NJIT men's soccer, on a stretch of four consecutive shutouts, will host ASUN Conference opponent Lipscomb on Saturday at University Stadium on the campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, NJ. The match is slated for 6pm.
The match originally scheduled for 2pm at Kean University's East Campus Facility in Hillside, NJ, was moved to University Stadium at FDU due to the current field conditions.
NJIT, which sits in second place in the ASUN standings with nine points, only needs one point to secure a berth into the 2016 ASUN Championships. With a win or draw against Lipscomb or a USC Upstate/Stetson loss or draw, the Highlanders will advance to ASUN postseason.
A Look at NJIT (7-4-3; 3-1-0 ASUN)
Next Two Matches: vs. Lipscomb (10/22; 2 PM - Highlander Network); at North Florida (10/26; 1 PM - ASUN.TV)
Last Two Matches: W, 4-0 at Rutgers; W, 1-0 at USC Upstate
NJIT, coming off a 4-0 shutout victory over Big 10 opponent Rutgers, has notched four consecutive shutouts. The four goals scored is the most in a single match since October 25
th 2014, when the Highlanders scored five vs. Howard.
The seven wins thus far, matches the second-highest total mark for wins (done twice; 2013 & 2014) since, competing against a Division I schedule (first season 2004).
Freshman goalkeeper
Victor Pujades became the first NJIT player to earn ASUN Defensive Player of the Week honors after, recording his third consecutive shutout last week. With another clean sheet at Rutgers,
Pujades now sits atop the NJIT single-season Division I era record with seven shutouts on the season. The ASUN league-leader with seven shutouts has notched three matches in a row without conceding a goal.
Junior co-captain
Mamadou Guirassy and freshman
Rene White both scored in the win at Rutgers, as the pair shares the team lead with six goals each. The six goals score in a single-season, is one shy of the NJIT Division I record seven held by Franco Gamero in 2012.
Guirassy and White are the second-highest scoring duo in the league with 12 goals combined. Guirassy has scored a goal in three of his last four matches.
Saturday will be NJIT's Coaches vs Cancer match that all ASUN Conference men's soccer teams are participating in this season. Donations will be accepted at Saturday's game for cancer research.
A Look at Lipscomb (7-5-1; 2-2-0 ASUN)
Next Two Matches: vs. Lipscomb (10/22; 2 PM - Highlander Network); at Evansville (10/25; 7 PM CT)
Last Two Matches: W, 1-0 vs. UAB; W, 2-1 vs. USC Upstate
Lipscomb, ranked 10
th in the latest NSCAA South Region Poll (as of October 18), picked up its seventh win of the season against UAB, surpassing last season's win total. UAB entered the match with an RPI of 67, giving Lipscomb its best non-conference win of the year.
Lipscomb moved to the No. 10 spot after, picking up wins over UAB and USC Upstate, securing the Bisons spot among the best teams in the South Region. Lipscomb debuted at No. 3 in the first releasing of the poll back in August.
The Bisons look for their first conference road win of the season at NJIT on Saturday.
Lipscomb's offense has only scored four away goals in five matches, while scoring 15 at home.
Logan Paynter was back among the goals and assists after a six-match pointless streak. The sophomore recorded his third multi-goal game of his career in the 2-1 comeback win against USC Upstate. His 17 total points rank him third in the ASUN entering this weekend's action.
