NEWARK, NJ–The NJIT men's soccer team will hit the road for a midweek non-conference matchup at Drexel on Tuesday.

Game Information
Kickoff is slated for 5pm at Vidas Field and will be streamed live on FloSports.

All-Time Series
NJIT will look for its first all-time win against Drexel.  The Dragons lead the all-time series, 4-0-3.  Last season, the two teams met at the Fairfield by Marriott Invitational hosted by James Madison.  The end result was a 2-2 draw.

Back-to-Back Wins for the First Time This Season
NJIT picked up its first back-to-back wins 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 - Tied for First in Nation for Total Assists
Sophomore Maximus Barboto is tied for first in the nation and leads the America East in total assists (8) while ranking third in the nation in assists per goal (0.89).  This season, Barboto has tallied at least one assist in five out of nine matches and registered a pair of assists in three matches.

Men's Soccer NCAA RPI
The America East Conference is ranked third of all conferences and features five programs in the top 50.  NJIT is ranked #44.
#9 - Vermont
#28 - Bryant
#37 - UMBC
#44 - NJIT
#49 - UNH

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
On a rainy Saturday night, NJIT rolled to a 4-1 home victory over visiting UMass Lowell in the America East Conference opener for both teams at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium.

NJIT scored a pair of goals in the first six minutes of the match and added two goals in the second half to record its first league victory of the season, moving to 4-3-2 overall, 1-0-0 in the America East. 

In the Highlanders win, four different players scored goals: Alvaro Heredia (1:18), Jordi Navio Sanchez (5:36), Maximus Barboto (51:51) and Enrique Mutsoli (69:55).  Five different players were credited with assists: Navio Sanchez, Sergio Martinez Cubel, Asembo Augo, Hugo Tavares and Heredia.

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 four goals and one assist.  His four goals ranks third in the America East.
–Newcomer Alvaro Heredia, a transfer from Xavier, has tallied three goals ranking second on the team.
–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.

Scouting Drexel
–Drexel enters Tuesday match with a 4-1-2 overall record
–Most recently the Dragons defeated Elon, 1-0.
–Drexel is undefeated in their last four matches (3-0-1).
–NJIT and Drexel have one common opponent (UMass Lowell).  NJIT defeated the River Hawks, 4-1, on Saturday and the Dragons topped UMass Lowell 3-2 on September 12.
–The Dragons are led by Julian Jordheim with three goals and seven points.
–Three different Dragons have recorded two goals this season.
–Antonio Illuminato paces the Dragons with five assists and Cesar Banacloy tallied three assists.
–The Dragons were selected to finish seventh out of 11 teams in the Preseason CAA Men's Soccer Coaches Poll.
–Junior Youri Senden was selected to the Preseason All-CAA team.

Next Up
NJIT will make its first America East road trip on Saturday when the Highlanders visit Binghamton.  Kickoff is slated for 6pm.

Stay Connected
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