Oilers to Face Davis & Elkins in G-MAC Semifinal
The Game
The University of Findlay men's soccer team will take on Davis & Elkins College in the semifinals of the 2017 Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) Men's Soccer Tournament on Thursday, Nov. 2 at 1:30 pm. The matchup of the #3 (UF) and #2 (D&E) seeds will take place in New Concord, Ohio on the campus of Muskingum University with the top-seeded and nationally-ranked Ohio Valley Fighting Scots hosting.
Video Stream
Video streaming will be provided by the Great Midwest Athletic Conference and will be made available on the Great Midwest Digital Network. The contest can be watched online or can be streamed via Apple TV, Roku, AmazonFire TV, and Android TV by searching for the 'Great Midwest' channel.
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Head Coach Andy Smyth
Coach Smyth is in his 29th year as the head coach of the Oilers soccer program. In that time at Findlay, Smyth has coached the Oilers men to a record of 221-255-38 with eleven winning seasons and one NCAA Division II Final Four appearance (2003).
The Oilers (13-5,12-3 G-MAC)
With 13 wins this season, the Oilers have the most wins in a season at Findlay since 2001 when the team finished 13-2-2. One more win would tie the all-time wins record at 14, matching the 1992 season where Findlay finished 14-6.
Junior Josh Burton has been dominant this season, firing off conference-bests in shots (90), shots on goal (47), and is tied at the top of the conference in goals (12) and points (28). Burton, who has four assists on the season, had game-winning goals on Sep. 23 against Cedarville and again on Oct. 7 against Malone.
Fellow forward, sophomore Josh Dickinson, is having a great year as well. Dickinson has set career-highs in goals (9), assists (7), and points (25). After a slow start to the season, Dickinson has been on fire as of late, scoring at least one goal in each of his previous four games including a two-goal performance in the G-MAC Quarterfinal against Trevecca Nazarene. Dickinson earned Great Midwest Player of the Week on Oct. 10 after a week in which he netted three goals and four assists.
Also look for freshman Alex Kerstetter to make an impact. The Bloomfield Hills, Mich. native has scored five goals and has six assists for a total of 16 points. Findlay's young forward had a season-highlight on Oct. 5 when he recorded a hat trick and tallied two assists in a win over Walsh. The eight points scored in that game tied a school record, a record that had not been touched since 1998.
The Senators (13-2-2, 11-1-2 G-MAC)
Davis & Elkins has won 12 of their last 14 games and is coming off of a 2-1 quarterfinal win over Ohio Dominican. The Senators have played two ranked opponents this year, losing 2-0 to #17 Mercyhurst on Sep. 9 and tying with #16 Ohio Valey on Oct. 5. Against non-ranked teams, D&E has a record of 13-1-1.
The Senators are second in the G-MAC with 48 goals scored this season and are also second in goals allowed, giving up just 11 scores all season. Their goalies have done a great job in the net and have recorded a save percentage of .851, the best in the conference.
Davis & Elkins is led by sophomore Tim Staerz who is tied for the conference lead with 12 goals scored and 28 points. He has four assists as well. Staerz has scored two goals in three different games this year including two goals in the Senators' win over the Panthers in the G-MAC Tournament opener.
Freshman Rafa Moreno also has 12 goals for the Red and White this season. He has scored a goal in nine of the Senators' games this season, highlighted by a hat trick on Sep. 30 in a 6-0 win over Ohio Dominican.
In goal, sophomore Hedi Mehnaoui has started in 14 games this season while only allowing eight goals and recording seven shutouts. He has compiled a record of 12-2 in net, making 48 saves and compiling a save percentage of .857, both tops in the conference.
Record Watch
- Josh Burton has 90 shots this season and needs just five more to become the single-season school record holder, passing the mark of 94 set by Luis Cortell in 2003
- As a team, the Oilers are one win shy of tying the school record for wins in a season
- As a team, the Oilers are four goals away from breaking the record for most goals in a season. This year's team has 47 goals scored. The school-record of 50 was set in 1992.
- As a team, the Oilers are 13 shots away from setting the school record for most shots in a season. This year's team has 338. The record of 350 was set in 1991.