ANDERSON, S.C. - With back-to-back victories last week, Anderson University men's soccer returns to the pitch for its final nonconference regular season matchup when it hits to road the in-state opponent Francis Marion on Wednesday. Kickoff from the Murray G. Hartzler Soccer Field is set for 7 p.m.
The Trojans
AU notched its biggest win of the 2014 campaign when it upset No.
18 ranked Wingate, 3-0, Saturday afternoon in front one of its
largest crowds of the season for Homecoming. With the win, the
Trojans have won three of their last four contests, as they enter
the midweek showdown with an 8-7 overall record and a 6-4 mark in
South Atlantic Conference play. With its six wins in the league,
Anderson holds 18 points and sits alone in third place in the SAC
standings.
With a victory on Saturday at Carson-Newman, the Trojans would secure the No. 3 seed and a home match in the opening round of next week's SAC Tournament. The home match in the conference tournament would the first since AU hosted Wingate in the opening round in 2011.
Currently, two Trojans tie for the team-lead in goals, as junior Andre Carle scored one the of three AU goals on Saturday against Wingate and tied freshman Magnus Larsen for the team lead. Larsen shined last week with two goals against Brevard and tacking on an assist against the Bulldogs. The tandem has six goals apiece as they rank sixth in the conference.
Sophomore goalkeeper Bo Haug added his fifth shutout of the season against Wingate, as he recorded just one save for the afternoon. For his career, Haug has posted 11 shutouts in his 41 appearances in goal.
The Patriots
In the latest NCAA Southeast Region rankings, Francis Marion was
slotted eighth as the top-six in the region advance to the NCAA
Tournament. With two more wins following the release date of the
latest rankings, the Patriots come into Wednesday's contest with a
9-3-2 overall record and a 4-2-2 mark in the Peach Belt Conference.
FMU is also riding a three-match winning streak, out-scoring its
opponents 8-2 in the span.
Francis Marion currently ranks third in the PBC in goals scored with 28, two behind second place USC Aiken. Leading the offense is senior forward Benjamin Kwast with seven goals, despite playing in 11 of FMU's 14 matches this season. In FMU's latest match, Kwast recorded a hat trick in a 4-0 win over Georgia Southwestern on Saturday. Teammate Julius Broman follows with six goals on the year.
In goal, sophomore Mike Warn has played in every minute thus far into the season, as he has posted 44 saves en route to seven shutouts. His 44 stops ranks eighth in the PBC as he carries a 1.09 goals-against average.
The Series
Anderson and Francis Marion have met every season since 2009 with
the Trojans holding a 4-1 record in the previous five matchups.
Last season, AU used a game-winner from Bernd Muxel in the 65th
minute to clinch an unbeaten record against nonconference opponents
for the 2013 campaign.
