Game 8	Iona  (2-2-0) at NJIT (3-2-2)
Date | Time	Tuesday, September 19, 2023 | 7pm
Location | Field	Newark, NJ | Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium
All-Time Series	Iona leads series, 7-1
Live Stats	In-game statistics (free)
Live Video	America East TV

NEWARK, NJ–The NJIT men's soccer team will look to stay undefeated at home on Tuesday when the Highlanders welcome Iona.

Game Information 
Kickoff is slated for 7pm on Tuesday, September 19 at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium.  The match will be streamed live on America East TV with in-game statistics available on NJITHighlanders.com. 

Undefeated at Home
The Highlanders are undefeated at home (3-0-1) with wins over Villanova (4-1),  La Salle (3-2), a tie against Rider (1-1) and (4-0) win against Sacred Heart.  This is the best start since the 2018 season at home when NJIT started off the season 3-0-0.

Back-to-Back Wins for the First Time This Season
NJIT picked up its first back-to-back wins last week with victories over La Salle (3-2) and Sacred Heart (4-0).  The Highlanders have scored four goals twice this season (vs. Villanova; W, 4-1) and Sacred Heart.

Maximus Barboto - Nation's Assists Leader
Sophomore Maximus Barboto leads the nation and America East in total assists (8) while ranking second in the nation in assists per goal (1.14).  This season, Barboto has tallied at least one assist in five out of seven matches and registered a pair of assists in three matches.

America East Offensive Player of the Week
Sophomore Maximus Barboto has been selected America East Offensive Player of the Week the league office announced on Tuesday.

In a 2-0 week for the Highlanders, Barboto tallied four assists in a pair of Highlander wins.

Barboto, the nation's assists leader with eight assists, registered two assists against La Salle (3-2; Sept. 12) and Sacred Heart (4-0; Sept. 16).  Barboto ranks second in the nation in assists per game (1.14).

The 2022 America East Rookie of the Year tops the America East in total assists and ranks fifth in points (eight).

This season, 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.

Samuel Reisgys Surpasses 250 Career Saves
Reisgys, the Highlanders graduate student from Rimbach, Germany surpassed 250 career saves in a 1-1 draw against Rider on September 8, 2023.  Reisgys is NJIT's all-time career leader in saves with 257.

Last Time Out
Junior forward Asembo Augo scored a pair of goals and the Highlanders recorded its first shutout of the season with a 4-0 home victory over visiting Sacred Heart Saturday evening at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium.

NJIT, which won its second straight match of the season, improves to 3-2-2 overall and remains undefeated at home, standing at 3-0-1.  Sacred Heart moves to 3-4-0 overall on the season.

The Highlanders had three different goal scorers in the win: Joseph Davis (28:36), Asembo Augo (44:55; 72:23) and Hugo Tavares (76:55).  Four different Highlanders were credited with an assist: Enrique Mutsoli, Jordi Navio Sanchez, Hugo Tavares and Maximus Barboto.

United Soccer Coaches Player of the Week/America East Offensive Player of the Week
Junior captain Goncalo Franco picked up a pair of Player of the Week awards after netting a pair of goals in the Highlanders 4-1 win over Big East opponent Villanova on August 31.  

All-Time Series
Iona leads the all-time series, 7-1.  NJIT has lost the last six outings against Iona.  The Highlanders lone win against the Gaels came in 2006, a 5-0 victory in Newark, NJ.

2022 Rewind
The Highlanders will look to make it four consecutive appearances in the America East Conference Tournament after finishing the 2022 season with a 5-8-4 overall record, 1-4-2 in the league.

NJIT News and Notes
–Eighth-year head coach Fernando Barboto returns 17 players from a season ago and announced the addition of 14 newcomers to the 2023 roster.
–Graduate student Samuel Reisgys and junior Goncalo Franco were named 2023 captains.
–Sophomore Maximus Barboto, son of Fernando Barboto, was named 2022 America East Rookie of the Year and was rated 76th out of 100 freshmen nation-wide in TopDrawerSoccer.com National Freshmen Top-100 Postseason list.
–Barboto, Andrea Campoli and Hugo Tavares were selected to the 2022 America East All-Rookie Team.
–Tavares paces NJIT with three goals and one assist.
–Newcomer Alvaro Heredia, a transfer from Xavier, scored goals in back-to-back games for the Highlanders (Rider & La Salle)
–NJIT was voted to finish fifth in the 2023 America East Preseason Poll.
–The Highlander schedule features 18 regular season matches and seven America East matches to finish the season.

NJIT-Iona Ties
–Barboto was the head coach of Iona for 13 seasons prior to joining the Highlanders in 2016, building the Gaels into one of the top Division I men's soccer programs.
–Graduate student Kendell Thomas completed his undergraduate degree at Iona, playing in 13 career matches, including four starts on the backline.

Scouting Iona
–Iona enters Tuesday's match with a 2-2 overall record
–The Gaels are coming off its first MAAC Conference win against Niagara (1-0) on Sept. 16
–Iona was voted to finish second (out of 11 teams) in the MAAC along with Sergio Gonzalez Fernandez and Tim Timchenko being named to the Preseason All-MAAC Team.
–Camil Azzam Ruiz leads the Gaels with four goals and eight points while Matias Morales has tallied two assists.

Next Up
NJIT will begin America East Conference action and conclude its five-match homestand on Saturday, September 23 at 7pm.  The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.

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