#BEfútbol Minute – League Play Opens With Five Matches On BEDN
BIG EAST Notes - 9.15.17 (PDF)
NEW YORK – BIG EAST play kicks off with all five games on the BIG EAST Digital Network with three games at 1 p.m. Eastern and two at 7 p.m.
In the 1 o’clock hour, there will be a rematch of the 2016 BIG EAST Championship final as Creighton visits Butler. Butler won last year’s championship, played on their home field in Indianapolis, 2-1. There will be a regional match up with St. John’s visiting Seton Hall and a clean slate for Marquette who is looking for their first win of the season. The Golden Eagles will try their luck at Villanova.
In the nightcap - No. 9 Georgetown visits Xavier in a battle of the streaking teams. The Hoyas are unbeaten this season (4-0-1); while Xavier has not lost a match since opening Friday (4-1-1). Providence, the preseason coaches’ favorite, will look to get their first W against a strong DePaul team who has won their last two matches.
During the non-conference portion of the season, the 10 BIG EAST teams went 28-23-5 against teams from other leagues, played in 17 overtime contests and went 3-6-0 against teams in the top 25.
Creighton at Butler - 1 p.m.
The last time these two teams saw each other it was in the 2016 BIG EAST tournament title game. Butler earned redemption for its prior loss to Creighton with a 2-1 victory, leading by two goals into the 64th minute. Saturday’s match has both teams receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches national poll. Butler was ranked 25th to start the year, Creighton 14th. Butler has suffered some injuries in the midfield with Jared Timmer and Marco Charalambous out for the year. BU’s leading goal scorer this season is Brandon Guhl (4 goals). Creighton has a new starting keeper in Michael Kluver (3-2-0, .737 save percentage). Kluver had only played in two matches prior to this season. Saturday’s match will be played at Butler’s Victory Field, not the Sellick Bowl. BU has scored 10 goals this year, Creighton - six.
St. John’s at Seton Hall - 1 p.m.
St. John’s (3-2-1) is on the road for the first time since Aug. 27 after hosting four opponents in the friendly confines of Belson Stadium. SJU is currently riding a three-match unbeaten streak with wins over Temple and UCSB. Alistair Johnston leads the offense with four goals, but Andrew Withers has been SJU’s strength in goal with a .875 save percentage (21 saves). Seton Hall’s hot streak was ended this week with a 2-0 loss to Delaware. SHU had been on a three-match winning streak and was ranked 10th in the regional poll. Andres Arcila leads the Pirates with 11 points (4G, 3A). The Hall’s newcomers in goal have also found success: Freshman Elliot Munford and Sophomore Steven Catudal. St. John’s defeated Seton Hall, 1-0 in 2016. St. John’s leads the series 18-12-2.
Marquette at Villanova - 1 p.m.
Marquette is looking for its first win of the season (0-4-1), while Villanova will be trying to break .500 (3-3-1) and put together a win streak of two games after defeating Rider, 2-0 on Wednesday. The Wildcats lead the series record 3-1-1 with VU having won the last two meetings 2-1. Andreas Bartosinski leads the Villanova offense with three goals. For Marquette, last year’s BIG EAST Freshman of the Year Luka Prpa hasn’t seen the goal production of the year before, but he along with Grant Owens and Brendan Skinner each lead MU with a goal each. Both Marquette and Villanova played ranked Virginia this year - Villanova lost 3-2 in double overtime, Marquette is coming off a 2-0 loss this week.
DePaul at Providence - 7 p.m.
Historically, DePaul (3-3-0) will be searching for its first win ever against Providence (2-3-0), the team who was unanimously chosen by the coaches as the preseason No. 1 team. Providence leads their all-time series 4-0-2, winning last year’s contest 2-1. DePaul enters Saturday on a two-match win streak defeating Drake 3-1 and IUPUI 2-1. Philip Konigstein leads the league in points (12P, 5G, 2A) and has scored three goals in the last two games. The Friars boast the preseason Offensive Player of the Year, Mac Steeves, who returned this season from an injury. Steeves so far leads the Providence offense with nine points on three goals and three assists. Steeves scored two of the three goals in a shutout win over Bryant. PC went 7-2-0 in league play a year ago.
No.9 Georgetown at Xavier - 7 p.m.
Both Xavier and Georgetown are riding unbeaten streaks coming into Friday’s league opener. Xavier has not lost a match since Aug. 25, an OT 2-1 loss to Loyola-Chicago. Xavier won three straight from Aug. 27 through Sept. 4, including a 3-2 double OT victory at then-No. 22 Boston College. Xavier has outscored opponents 13-6 this season, led by four goals from Cameron Taylor. Georgetown has not lost yet this season and has jumped in and up the national rankings over the past two weeks with wins over then-No. 19 Coastal Carolina and then-No. 15 UCLA. Achara leads the Hoya offense with five goals this year, ranking sixth in the country in goals per game. The series between these two teams is tied 3-3-0, 2-2-0 in regular season play. Xavier won last year’s meeting 2-0.
#BEfutbol Weekend Schedule
Saturday, Sept. 16
1 p.m.
rv CREIGHTON at rv BUTLER (
BEDN Watch Link)
ST. JOHN’S at SETON HALL (
BEDN Watch Link)
MARQUETTE at VILLANOVA (
BEDN Watch Link)
7 p.m.
DEPAUL at PROVIDENCE (
BEDN Watch Link)
No. 9 GEORGETOWN at XAVIER (
BEDN Watch Link)
All times listed are Eastern.