Game 12	No. 15 Vermont (8-1-2, 2-0-0 AE) NJIT (4-4-3, 1-0-1 AE)
Date | Time	Saturday, October 7, 2023 | 3pm
Location | Field	Newark, NJ | Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium
All-Time Series	UVM leads 5-0
Live Stats	In-game statistics (free)
Live Video	ESPN+ ($$)

NEWARK, NJ–The NJIT men's soccer team will host No. 15 Vermont on Homecoming Weekend, Saturday, October 7. 

Game Information
Kickoff is slated for 3pm at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium and will be streamed live on ESPN+ with in-game statistics available on NJITHighlanders.com.

Highlanders at Home
NJIT is 4-1-1 overall inside Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium.  The four Highlander wins were against Villanova (W, 4-1), La Salle (W, 3-2), Sacred Heart (W, 4-0) and UMass Lowell (W, 4-1).  The lone tie at home came against Rider (T, 1-1).

America East Co-Rookie of the Week
Freshman Sebastian Sunol has been selected America East Conference Co-Rookie of the Week, the league office announced on Monday.

After falling behind early in the 26th minute NJIT scored the equalizer with under four minutes to play in the match on a goal by freshman Sunol in the 87th minute.  The play started with Maximus Barboto serving the ball into the box off a corner kick.  Kendall Thomas elevated and headed the ball back out to the top of the box where Alvaro Heredia's blast was blocked and Sunol picked up the rebound and tucked home to the left of the Binghamton keeper for a 1-1 tie.

America East Conference/Highlanders in the RPI
The America East Conference as a whole is ranked as the third-toughest league in the nation, behind the Pac-12 and ACC.  This week, NJIT is ranked No. 67 out of 211 Division I men's soccer teams.

The America East is currently ranked 3^rd in RPI among all conferences.  #AEMSOC is 1 of 3 conferences (ACC & Pac-12) with four teams ranked in the top 40: UVM (11), Bryant (32), UMBC (36), UNH (39).  #AEMSOC is 1 of 4 conferences (ACC, BIG 10, Pac-12) to have at least 80% of its teams ranked in the RPI top 120 (7 of 8).

Tied for First in the Nation in Assists
Sophomore Maximus Barboto, the 2022 America East Conference Rookie of the Year, sits tied for first in the nation in assists with 8.  Barboto has tallied at least one assist in five out of seven matches and registered a pair of assists in three matches.

The eight assists in a single season ties the NJIT Division I record and his 12 career assists ranks fifth all-time in the NJIT Division I era.

Reisgys Surpasses 250 Career Saves/Closing in on NJIT DI Record for Career Games
Samuel Reisgys, NJIT's all-time leader in career saves surpassed the 250 saves mark in a 1-1 draw against Rider.  Heading into the Vermont match, Reisgys stands at 70 career games and is approaching the NJIT DI all-time record of 76 career games, which is held by Rene White (2016-21).

1-0-1 in League Action
NJIT (4-4-3 overall) is one of three unbeaten America East teams, standing at 1-0-1 (UVM; 2-0-0) and UMBC (1-0-1).  

Scouting UVM
–Vermont is undefeated in their last nine matches, entering Saturday's match with a 8-1-2 overall record, 2-0-0 in the America East.
–The Catmounts most recently defeated UConn, 2-0, in Storrs, CT, scoring a goal in each half.
–First-year forward Sydney Wathuta was named America East Co-Rookie of the Week on Monday after scoring his first collegiate goal last week at UMass. The Calgary, Alberta native's goal was the game-tying tally for the Catamounts. Wathuta started in both games for Vermont who went 1-0-1 last week.
–The Catamounts are the only team in America East to begin league play with two wins.
–UVM ranks in the top 10 nationally in three statistical categories through 10 games this season. The Catamounts are ranked No. 3 in save percentage (.868), No. 5 in team goals against average (.500), and No. 10 in winning percentage (.800).
–Yaniv Bazini currently ranks No. 2 nationally in game-winning goals this season, scoring three clinching tallies. The redshirt junior has scored game-winners in each of Vermont's last three victories.  He currently leads America East with two goals in two league matches.
–Owen Jack ranks No. 6 nationally in goals against average (.455), No. 5 in save percentage (.857), and No. 2 in shutouts (6).

Next Up
NJIT will conclude the non-conference slate on the road at Delaware on October 10.  Kickoff is slated for 7pm on FloSports.

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