OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha men's soccer team steps out of conference play on Saturday, Oct. 31 for a match at Big 10 leader, No. 21 Rutgers in Piscataway, New Jersey. Kickoff from Yurcak Field is set for 12:00 p.m. (CT) and will be aired on BTN Plus (subscription required). Links to live stats and video streaming will be available at OMavs.com.
Earlier in the week, the Mavericks drew with Missouri State in their home finale, 2-2. Emir Alihodzic and Kevin Correa each scored for UNO.
Omaha wraps up the 2015 regular season on Saturday, Nov. 7 with a Summit League match at Eastern Illinois.
Omaha by the Numbers
4929 – Attendance so far this season through eight home games, tops in the Summit League.
548 – Average home attendance this season, second in the Summit League
31 – Saves this season by Josh Christensen, fifth most in the Summit League.
15 – Number of games started by Mark Moulton this season. Moulton is the only player on the roster to start every game.
16 – Number of points from Logan Mendez, which leads the team. Mendez has six goals and four assists. He ranks second in the Summit League in goals and points, as well as fourth in assists.
24 – Assists for Omaha this season, tops in the Summit League.
25 – Goals this season for Omaha, second in the Summit League.
8 – Number of wins this season for Omaha, the second most in program history.
3 – Number of ties this season, which is a new school record.
5 – Assists from Mark Moulton which is tops on the team and third in the league.
0.88 – Goals-against average by Ghitis, which is second in the Summit League.
About Omaha
Earlier this week Omaha drew with Missouri State, 1-1. For the season, Omaha is 8-4-3 overall and 2-2-1 in Summit League play. The Mavericks currently sit in second place in the league standings with seven points through five games.
Senior Logan Mendez currently leads the team in points (16) and goals (6). Mendez also is second in assists (4). In the Summit League scoring, Mendez is tied for second in goals, fourth in assists, and second in points. Junior Mark Moulton leads the Mavericks with five assists and is second in goals (5) and points (15). Moulton is third in the league standings in assists, tied for fourth in goals and is third in points. Junior Lalo Gamboa also has four assists, while redshirt freshman Noor Hamadi has three goals.
Omaha has used two goals keepers this season in sophomore Joseph Ghitis and senior Josh Christensen. Ghitis has eight starts in nine games. He is 4-3-2 on the year with two shut-outs and a 0.88 goals-against average. Christensen has started seven matches and owns a 4-1-1 mark. He has a 1.27 goals-against average.
The Maverick offense has put 25 goals on the board this season and has been credited with 24 assists. They need only one goal to tie the all-time program mark of 26 goals in a season. UNO averages 1.67 goals per game, which is best in program history.
Defensively, Omaha has a 1.06 goals-against average and a .785 save percentage with two shut-outs. They have allowed one or less goals in 11 games this season. The Rutgers match will be the third match-up against top 25 teams, fourth if you include the exhibition match against Washington.
This season, UNO is eligible for Summit League and NCAA postseason competitions after completing the transition to NCAA Division I.
Reporting on Rutgers
Scarlet Knight Notes:
- Rutgers is 10-4-1 overall and 4-3 in Big 10 play. They sit atop of the Big 10 standings after defeating Ohio State last week.
- The Scarlet Knights cracked the NSCAA NCAA Top 25 this week and are rated No. 21.
- They are currently on a six-game winning streak and have outscored the opposition 15-4.
- As a team, Rutgers appears in the top 10 in six national categories including ranking fifth in points per game (6.87), sixth in assists per game (2.20) and scoring offense (2.33).
- Rutgers' head coach Dan Donigan was an assistant coach at St. Louis when UNO head coach Jason Mims was a player.
Players to watch:
Jason Wright is the leading scorer for the Scarlet Knights. Nationally, Wright is second in goals and fourth in total points.
- He has 13 goals and 29 points this season, including five game winners.
Goalkeeper David Greczek has played every minute in net this season for Rutgers.
- Greczek owns a 1.03 goals-against average and a .771 save percentage and ranks 10th in career saves in the NCAA.
Series History against Rutgers.
This is the first meeting between the two the two programs.
Mavs Move-up a Spot in West Region
Omaha has moved up one spot in the NSCAA NCAA Western Region Poll this week. The Mavericks are now sixth in the region. Summit League leader, Denver remains atop the Western Region with an 11-0-3 record, but dropped one spot in the latest national rankings.
| RANK |
SCHOOL |
PREVIOUS |
W-L-T |
| 1. |
Denver |
1 |
11-0-3 |
| 2. |
Seattle |
2 |
14-3 |
| 3. |
UNLV |
4 |
10-4-1 |
| 4. |
Utah Valley |
3 |
12-4-1 |
| 5. |
SIU-E |
6 |
9-2-1 |
| 6. |
Omaha |
7 |
8-4-2 |
| 7. |
Drake |
5 |
9-4-1 |
| 8. |
Loyola-Chicago |
8 |
8-4-3 |
| 9. |
Bakersfield |
9 |
6-4-4 |
| 10. |
Bradley |
NR |
7-7 |
End of an Era
Last weekend, the men's soccer program honored eight seniors for their contributions to the program. The eight student-athletes being recognized are: Emir Alihodzic, Josh Christensen, Kevin Correa, Andres Irvin, Logan Mendez, Jesus Perez, Felipe da Silva, and Parker Victor.
Christensen and Mendez were part of the first UNO men's soccer team in 2011. Mendez played three games in 2011 and scored the first goal in program history, but was forced to take a redshirt following injury. Christensen took a redshirt season in 2013.
Summit League Tournament
Omaha is still in the running for one on four spots in the Summit League tournament to be held in Denver, Colo. on Nov. 12 and 14. The league takes the top four teams according to points and at the moment Omaha is in second place with seven points through five games.
No. 8 Denver leads the league with 10 points from a 3-0-1 record. Fort Wayne, Oral Roberts, and Western Illinois are tied for third with six points. Western Illinois has played five games, while the other two teams have played only four. The Mavericks own wins over Fort Wayne and Oral Roberts this season.
Up Next
The Mavericks will wrap up the 2015 regular season with a Summit League match at Eastern Illinois. Kickoff from Charleston, Ill. is set for 10:00 a.m.
