Saint John's soccer begins conference play with a 4 p.m. match today at Hamline (Pat Paterson Field in St. Paul). – Live Stats
Preview Video:
-Head coach John Haws (0:42)
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: The Johnnies (2-3-1 overall) begin its MIAC schedule with a four-game winless streak, including a scoreless tie at Wisconsin-Platteville Sept. 14 and a 5-0 loss at No. 5 Loras (Iowa) Sept. 15. Loras scored 2:57 into the match, with what proved to be the game-winner and added another at the 17:30 mark. The Duhawks out-shot the Johnnies 24-8 overall and 12-5 on goal. Sophomore Kevin Lebahn (New Hope, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) made five saves in the first 55:54 of the match, while senior Ryan Brutger (St. Cloud, Minn./Apollo) made two stops in the final 34:06. Twelve of the 19 Johnnies that played in the match were either freshmen or sophomores.
MIAC OPENERS: Since 1981, the Johnnies are 21-9-2 (.688) in the MIAC opener, including a 9-4-1 record when the first conference match is away from Collegeville. Three of the four losses have occurred in the last five seasons.
A LOOK AT THE PIPERS: Like SJU, Hamline posted a few wins to start the season but finds itself riding a winless streak. The Pipers (3-2 overall) fell to Aurora (Ill.) 2-0 Sept. 15 after playing 57 scoreless minutes. HU scored in the first half but the goal was disallowed due to an offside call. Hamline posted win in its first three matches of the season against Crown (6-0), North Central (3-1) and Minnesota-Morris (1-0), which SJU defeated 5-1 to open the season Aug. 30. Freshman Nicholas Simondet leads the team in all four offensive categories: goals (3), assists (3), points (9) and game-winning goals (2). Freshman Joey Matesi has a 2-2 record with a 1.18 GAA and an .815 save percentage (22 saves) in net.
LAST YEAR'S MEETING: SJU dominated the game statistically, holding stark advantages in both shots (26-11), including a 17-6 edge after halftime, and corner kicks (12-2) but settled for a scoreless tie with the Pipers last Oct. 23 in Clemens Stadium. The Johnnies were also whistled for offsides five times and by a 10-4 count in fouls. Senior Michael Coborn (St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral) led SJU with six shots and junior Zane Heinselman (River Falls, Wis.) rattled a shot off the crossbar with 3:29 remaining in regulation. The Johnnies were without their third-leading scorer (18 points), David Wee (Savage, Minn./Prior Lake), who had to sit the game out due to receiving his fifth yellow card of the season Oct. 20.
SERIES HISTORY: Saint John's leads the series with a 27-4-3 record since 1981, including a 13-3-1 record in St. Paul. The series, however, is tied 4-4-1 in the last nine matches.
