
The men's soccer team will face two difficult tests in No. 15 Old Dominion and VCU this weekend in Norfolk, Va.
Men's Soccer Faces #15 ODU and VCU
Courtesy: Seton Hall Athletic Communications
Release: 09/06/2012
OLD DOMINION SERIES HISTORY
• Seton Hall will be facing the Old Dominion Monarchs for the first time in program history.
VCU SERIES HISTORY
• Seton Hall leads in the all-time series with VCU 3-1-0.
• Seton Hall won the last meeting between the two programs, picking up a 2-0 victory at home on Sept. 11, 2009.
FIRST RANKED FOE
Old Dominion (No. 15/NSCAA) is the first ranked opponent Seton Hall has faced in 2012. The Pirates are 24-49-9 all-time against Top-25 foes and 1-4-1 all-time against teams ranked 15th. Seton Hall's last win over the No. 15 team in the country was a 1-0 win over St. John's on Oct. 27, 1999.
MAX GARCIA HONORED
Junior forward Max Garcia was named to the BIG EAST Conference Weekly Honor Roll on Monday, Sept. 3, marking the first time this season and the second time in his career he has received the honor. Garcia scored goals against Army and Princeton to land on the conference Honor Roll.
WORKING OVERTIME
Seton Hall played its first overtime game of the year against Rider on Sept. 3, and the Pirates ended up with a positive result, winning 2-1 just 44 seconds into the extra period. Sophomore midfielder Andrew LoManto headed in the game-winner, the first of his career. It was the Pirates' first overtime win since a 2-1 victory over Boston University on Sept. 9, 2012.
NICE START
Freshman midfielder Eric Lagg made the first start of his career against Rider on Sept, 3, and he made an immediate impact, scoring the first goal of his career in the 45th minute.
FOLLOW THE LEADER
Junior forward Max Garcia led the Pirates in scoring last season, and he is off to a great start in 2012. He leads the Pirates in goals (2) and points (5), and ranks first in the BIG EAST in shots (18) and is tied for second in shots per game (4.50).
KUZAN KRUISING
Redshirt senior goalkeeper Michael Kuzan has started three-straight games in the nets for Seton Hall, and is putting up impressive numbers. He has given up just three goals in three games and earned his first shutout of the season with a 2-0 win over Army. He currently ranks eight in the conference with a .769 save percentage and eighth with a 1.00 goals against average.
ECHEVERRY ERA BEGINS
The season opener against Saint Peter's University marked the beginning of a new era for Seton Hall soccer under first-year head coach Gerson Echeverry. Echeverry was hired this winter after long-time head coach Manfred Schellscheidt announced his retirement after 24 years roaming the sidelines.
• Echeverry played at Seton hall from 1991-94, winning BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors in 1991.
• Echeverry was the top assistant coach at Seton Hall for five seasons (2003-07).
• Over the last three seasons Echeverry was an assistant coach for the USSF U17 men's national team.
FIRST-CAREER VICTORY
First year head coach Gerson Echeverry notched the first win of his coaching career with a 2-0 victory over Army on Aug. 27. The win was the 452nd in Seton Hall men's soccer history.
GREENE SCORES FIRST GOAL OF THE YEAR
Seton Hall's first goal of the 2012 season went to sophomore midfielder Kai Greene, who headed in a corner kick in the 25th minute against Saint Peter's University on Aug. 24.
DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
Senior midfielder Adriano Gabriele scored the game-winning goal against Army off a penalty kick in the Pirates' 2-0 win over the Black Knights on Aug. 27. If the sight looked familiar it is because Gabriele scored the game-winner against Army last year too, also with a penalty kick. He has two game-winning scores in his career.
SHU SCORES A RARE PAIR
Seton Hall defeated Army, 2-0, on Aug. 27, behind a pair of corner kicks from senior Adriano Gabriele and junior Max Garcia. It is the first time since 2007 that the Pirates converted two penalty kicks in the same game. Eliseo Giusfredi scored twice via PK in a 6-2 win over Pennsylvania on Sept. 3, 2007.
KUZAN PICKS UP SHUTOUT
Redshirt-senior Michael Kuzan earned his first shutout of the season and the second of his career in SHU's 2-0 win over Army on Aug. 27. He turned away four shots to post a clean sheet and record his first shutout since 2010.
COACHING STAFF ADDITIONS
New head coach Gerson Echeverry made two additions to his coaching staff for the 2012 season. Vincent Marcotrigiano will serve as the Pirates' full-time assistant coach will Guillermo Valencia has come on board to work with SHU's goalkeepers. Marcotrigiano played collegiately at George Mason University before enjoying a six-year professional career. Valencia has coached at the youth, club, collegiate and national level, and played professionally for 16 years.
MOVING ON UP
Junior forward Max Garcia led the Pirates in scoring last season with five goals and an assist for 11 points. While last year he generated all of his scoring playing out of the midfield, this season he has moved up to Seton Hall's front-row attack.
2012 TEAM CAPTAINS
Seton Hall features two captains for this year's team in junior forward Max Garcia and sophomore defender Mateusz Brela.
BIG EAST PRESEASON POLL
Seton Hall was picked to finish in sixth place in the Blue Division in the 2012 BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Pirates went 5-11-2 overall last season and 1-8 in the BIG EAST. They picked up 27 points to finish sixth in the poll. SHU returns 20 letterwinners and six of its top seven scorers from a year ago.
KLJESTAN INTO HALL OF FAME
Former Seton Hall men's soccer standout Sacha Kljestan was inducted into the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame in a ceremony held Monday, June 11, at the Fairmount Country Club in Chatham, N.J. Kljestan led the Pirates to three-straight NCAA Tournament berths from 2003-05. He was a two-time All-American and still holds the program's single-season assists record at 15.
CLASS OF 2016
Head coach Gerson Echeverry and the men's soccer program brought in six freshman this offseason to make up the Class of 2016. Joining the Pirates on the field this fall will be forward Danny Bartok (Union, N.J.), midfielder Lucas Della Ventura (Brookline, Mass.), midfielder Eric Lagg (Lafayette, N.J.), defender Pasquale Suriano (Lebanon, N.J.), defender Julian Kennedy (Nindorf, Germany) and defender Chris Hall (Bridgewater, N.J.).








