NEWARK, NJ–The NJIT men's soccer team will conclude the 2022 America East Conference regular season road slate on Friday night when the Highlanders visit UMBC in Baltimore, Maryland.
America East Conference Clinching Scenario | Standings
The Highlanders, still in search of its first America East Conference victory of the season, enters the contest with a 4-6-4 overall record and 0-3-2 in league action.
Game Information
The match will be played at Retriever Soccer Park with kickoff slated for 7pm on America East TV. In-game statistics will be available for free on UMBCRetreivers.com.
All-Time Series
Friday will mark the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools. NJIT leads the all-time series, 2-1. In the last meeting, UMBC topped NJIT 3-2 in Newark on October 28. NJIT registered wins on March 9, 2021 (W, 2-1) and April 9, 2021 (W, 1-0).
Last Time Out
UAlbany's Andrew Weiner scored the lone goal of the match in the 89th minute as the visiting Great Danes picked up a 1-0 road victory at NJIT in America East Conference men's soccer action at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium.
Scouting the Highlanders
NJIT has collected wins against James Madison, La Salle, Sacred Heart and Hartford while tying Drexel, Rider, UMass Lowell and Binghamton and dropped decisions at Big East foes UConn and Villanova, Iona from the MAAC, three-time defending America East Conference regular season champions New Hampshire, then-ranked No. 12 Vermont and UAlbany.
Prior to the New Hampshire goal in the second half on October 8, NJIT set a new Division I program record scoreless streak with a time of 407:25. NJIT entered the match unbeaten in the last four, registering three ties (Rider, UMass Lowell, Binghamton) and a victory against Sacred Heart).
Jose Del Valle leads the Highlander attack with four goals and nine points followed by Goncalo Franco and Asembo Augo with three goals. Freshman Maximus Barboto, who has earned America East Conference Rookie of the Week twice this season thus far, is the son of head coach Fernando Barboto.
Senior co-captain Samuel Reisgys has played in every match but one in goal for the Highlanders this season, posting a 1.52 goals-against average and a .716 saves percentage. His 229 career saves tops the record books in the NJIT All-Time Division I era.
Scouting UMBC
UMBC enters Friday's match with a 9-4-2 overall record, 3-2-0 in the America East. The Retrievers are coming off a thrilling win over No. 10 Vermont, as UMBC scored two goals in a span of 7:30, including the game-winning goal in the 89th minute to knock off the Catamounts.
The win over the Catamounts snapped the nation's longest winning streak at 11 and clinched a spot in the America East Championships for the Retrievers.
For the third consecutive week, UMBC senior midfielder Ryan Becher earned the America East Conference's Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week honor.
Becher converted a penalty kick with 92 seconds remaining as UMBC staged a dramatic rally and knocked off No. 10 Vermont, 2-1, at Retriever Soccer Park on Saturday, Oct. 22. In the 83', Becher earned an assist on Taylor Calheira's game-tying goal.
One of the Retrievers' tri-captains, Becher now has 11 goals and nine assists on the season, becoming the first Retriever to post a 30-point season since Pete Caringi III scored 32 points in 2012.
Next Up
NJIT will conclude the home portion of its schedule on Tuesday, November 1 hosting the newest member to the America East Conference, Bryant on Senior Night. In pregame ceremonies,
NJIT will recognize four graduate students: Luc Smith, J.J. Gaier, Anthony Rovito and Jose Del Valle and graduating seniors Alejandro Rabell, Samuel Reisgys, Jose Adames, Arrio Rusnak, Andreas Nicolaou and Eduardo Rossi.
